Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Hajj

The COVID-19 pandemic affected the 2020 Hajj (pilgrimage), which is the fifth pillar of the Five Pillars of Islam, where millions of Muslims from around the world visit Mecca and Medina every year during Hajj season for a week. Over 2,400,000 pilgrims attended Hajj in 2019. In March 2020, the minister of Hajj and Umrah encouraged those planning to visit the holy sites of Mecca and Medina later in the year to wait before making any bookings. Due to the highly contagious nature of COVID-19 in crowded places, flight restrictions in many countries, and the unavailability of a vaccine against the virus the ministry of Hajj and Umrah took such serious measures. However, in June 2020, the ministry of Hajj and Umrah announced that people from all nationalities who reside in Saudi Arabia are allowed to perform Hajj with a limited number of pilgrims, to ensure the safety and to prevent the transmission of COVID-19. History: The COVID-19 pandemic is an ongoing global pandemic caused by Coronavirus. The outbreak of the virus was first noted in Wuhan, China in early December 2019. On 30 January 2020, COVID-19 was declared by World Health Organization as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, and was declared as a pandemic on 11 March 2020. The COVID-19 transmission happens mainly through personal contact with a carrier of the coronavirus, which makes it highly contagious in small spaces where human contact is inevitable. COVID-19 can be transmitted through contaminated objects that were touched or coughed on by an infected person. Saudi Arabia closed the two holy sites of Mecca and Medina to stop the virus from spreading, further measures were taken by the Saudi government to prevent an outbreak of the COVID-19 virus, such as imposing 24 hours curfew in Mecca and Medina. Due to COVID-19, Hajj in 2020 was performed by relatively few people. Only those who live in Saudi Arabia, were between the ages of 20 and 50, and who were not displaying symptoms of COVID-19 could participate. Participants had to first apply online prior to being selected to participate, and preference was given to those who have not participated in the past. Historical cancellations of Hajj: Hajj (pilgrimage) has been cancelled 40 times through the history of Islam due to plague, political disagreements, and battles. In 1523-1533 (930-940 AD), Hajj was canceled due to the Qarmatian attack which led to the murder of 30,000 pilgrims and the looting of the Black Stone. In 1831, Hajj was suspended after a plague that was brought by the pilgrims coming from India, which is claimed to have ended the lives of more than half of the pilgrims in Mecca. The first outbreak of Cholera spread in Mecca happened in 1846, killing more than 15,000 and causing a plague lasting until 1850 in the city. The second outbreak of Cholera happened in 1858, leading to pilgrims being quarantined inside Hajj camps in Egypt. International responses to Hajj 2020: On 15 May 2020, the Singapore Muslims Council (MUIS) advised to skip Hajj in this year due to COVID-19 pandemic. On 2 June 2020, the Indonesian Minister of Religious Affairs declared cancelling the Hajj of 2020 before any groups of Indonesian pilgrims head to Mecca. On 6 June 2020, the Indian Hajj Committee announced it would provide refunds to all the pilgrims due to the inability of attending Hajj in 2020. On 11 June 2020, Malaysia announced it was barring pilgrims from attending Hajj in 2020 out of concerns over the danger of COVID-19, and the high spreadability of the virus in crowded places. Attending Hajj 2020: On 23 June 2020, Saudi Arabia announced Hajj would be held for a limited number of pilgrims who reside within the country due to the high risk of COVID-19. The Saudi Ministry of Hajj and Umrah imposed restrictions to the type of pilgrims who can attend Hajj in 2020, including banning older pilgrims from performing Hajj. Only 10,000 pilgrims are expected, as opposed to about two million usually. Pilgrims were chosen from the COVID-19 recovery database, 70% of them were non-Saudi residents. Precautions: The Saudi Ministry of Health reported taking serious measures during the Hajj 2020, pilgrims who were not effected by the virus were required to quarantine themselves at hotel rooms or at their homes if they live close enough to Mecca for a week prior to the arrival to perform Hajj. Pilgrims were also asked to maintain a safe social distance of two meters inside the holy mosque, pilgrims were separated into groups of 20 individuals per group who are accompanied by a guide through their whole Hajj performance.