JEDDAH/RIYADH: A five-point emergency response plan was approved on Thursday to ensure the security and safety of pilgrims during Hajj.
The plan covers risk assessment, the allocation of tasks and responsibilities, technical and administrative support, and the provision of food, fuel and accommodation in the event of a major incident.
Teams of volunteers will assist Civil Defense in implementing the plan if required, along with 32 government agencies. Many young people had expressed an interest in volunteer work because they were keen to help pilgrims, said Lt. Gen. Sulaiman Al-Amr, the director general of Civil Defense.
The aim was to provide the necessary resources for pilgrims to perform their rituals with ease, to guide them through the areas of pilgrimage in Makkah and Madinah and to protect them from accidents, Al-Amr said.
This year’s Hajj pilgrimage will begin in about three weeks.
Hajj infection-free so far: Health Ministry
So far, no infections have been diagnosed among pilgrims who have arrived at Hajj sites from around the world, the Health Ministry said.
Nonetheless, the ministry on its Twitter account urged pilgrims to continue to take adequate preventive measures against infectious diseases and flu, and to cooperate with health officials in the holy areas.
Points of entry by land, sea and air are manned by ministry officials to monitor the health of pilgrims.
The officials have been asked to supplement any vaccines that pilgrims may have failed to take before arrival.
6,015 pharma products, medical equipment cleared for pilgrims
The Saudi Food and Drug Authority (SFDA) has cleared 6,015 pharmaceutical products and medical equipment arriving at King Abdul Aziz International Airport in Jeddah and Prince Mohammed bin Abdul Aziz International Airport in Madinah.
“The SFDA did not authorize the release of some of the pilgrims’ food items because of poor storage, expiration or damage,” said Dr. Abdul Rahman Al-Sultan, SFDA executive director of awareness and information.
With the participation of the Madinah municipality, SFDA representatives inspected 341 food establishments, including kitchens, restaurants, fast-food outlets, bakeries and central markets, he added.
They seized 418 technical and health violators, and confiscated and destroyed 7,433 kg of food, including meat, chicken, fish, liver, vegetables, fruit, corn, chocolate and processed food.
The SFDA provided the Madinah secretariat with the establishments’ health and technical violations to implement fines and other penalties.
— With input from Mohammed Rasooldeen and Rodolfo C. Estimo Jr.
Saudi Arabia approves emergency plan to safeguard pilgrims
Saudi Arabia approves emergency plan to safeguard pilgrims
Ministry of Hajj and Umrah praises Iraqi authorities for arresting fraudsters touting fake Hajj trips
- A ministry source in the statement also warned prospective pilgrims to beware of unauthorized Hajj offers being promoted this year
- The ministry made it clear that visas for Umrah, tourism, work, family visits, transit, and other categories do not grant eligibility to perform Hajj
RIYADH: The Ministry of Hajj and Umrah expressed its gratitude for actions taken by the Supreme Commission for Hajj and Umrah in the Republic of Iraq that resulted in the prosecution of more than 25 companies fraudulently engaged in commercial Hajj operations.
A ministry source in the statement also warned prospective pilgrims to beware of unauthorized Hajj offers being promoted this year, primarily through social media.
Participation in Hajj requires pilgrims to obtain a legitimate Hajj visa issued by the authorities in the Kingdom in coordination with Hajj affairs offices in their respective countries, or via the Nusuk Hajj platform for those countries that do not have an official Hajj office.
The source said that the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah is monitoring advertisements from companies and campaigns, as well as identifying fake accounts on social networks allegedly offering Hajj packages at enticing prices.
The ministry made it clear that visas for Umrah, tourism, work, family visits, transit, and other categories do not grant eligibility to perform Hajj. It urged pilgrims to be careful not to fall victim to companies and others claiming to offer commercial Hajj campaigns or other misleading initiatives.
“Regulations must be followed and legally documented permits, as represented by the official Hajj visa, must be issued, so a safe, secure, well-managed Hajj program and fair representation to all nationalities is provided,” Mohsen Tutla, head of the World Hajj and Umrah Convention, told Arab News.
“Hajj is a mega event with more than 2 million worshippers. Can one imagine, if order was not imposed and (the event) not regulated, chaos would ensue,” he added.
In the statement, the ministry calls for everyone’s cooperation to help combat and report fraudulent companies and campaigns, and to seek information only by visiting its official website and engaging with its channels on social networks.
World’s largest Arabic opera opens in Riyadh
- The opera was produced by the Saudi Theater and Performing Arts Commission
RIYADH: “Zarqa Al-Yamama,” the world’s first and largest grand opera in Arabic, made its debut at the King Fahad Cultural Center in Riyadh, taking the audience on a lyrical journey through one of the best-known folkloric tales in the Arabian Peninsula.
The opera was produced by the Saudi Theater and Performing Arts Commission, and will run until May 4, telling the story of the central character’s attempts to warn her Jadis tribe of an imminent invasion.
Saudi chemistry duo add to KSA medal haul
- Team members were selected by Mawhiba
RIYADH: Two Saudi students have added to the Kingdom’s medal haul at the 2024 Mendeleev International Chemistry Olympiad being held in China from April 20-27.
Hassan Abdul Jalil Al-Khalifa, a third-grade secondary student from the Provincial Department of Education, Eastern Province, and fellow student Ali Salah Al-Moussa claimed bronze medals at the competition, lifting the Kingdom’s overall tally to three silver and 20 bronze.
More than 150 students from 27 countries are competing at the 58th session of the Olympiad.
Saudi Arabia is represented by a team of six students from several educational institutions.
Team members were selected by the King Abdulaziz and his Companions Foundation for Giftedness and Creativity, also known as Mawhiba.
Students were chosen after attending a series of forums over the course of two years, and were trained by Mawhiba, in partnership with the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology.
Saudi deputy minister of interior heads delegation at first conference to combat drug trafficking
- Kingdom’s participation in the conference was an extension of its efforts in the war on drugs
MAUTIRIUS: Dr. Nasser bin Abdul Aziz Al-Dawood, Saudi deputy minister of interior, headed the Kingdom’s delegation participating in the first conference to combat drug trafficking and substance abuse, held in Mauritius, which concluded on Thursday.
Al-Dawood said that the Kingdom’s participation in the conference was an extension of its efforts in the war on drugs, monitoring and diagnosing their effects and harms, and strengthening international cooperation procedures and information exchange to combat the activities of organized crime networks in general, and drug crime in particular.
Cultural Communication Center holds human communication diwaniya
- The diwaniya tackled three themes
SAKAKA: The King Abdulaziz Center for Cultural Communication in cooperation with Al-Jouf Youth Association, held the Cultural Communication Diwaniya “Basic Pillars for Human Communication in the Kingdom” in Sakaka on Thursday.
The diwaniya tackled three themes: the ethics of human communication; the dimensions of human communication according to Vision 2030; and human communication according to international law.
Abdulaziz bin Abdulwahad Al-Hamwan, the center’s supervisor in Al-Jouf, said the goals of diwaniya were to “enhance national and human communication, consolidate the values of national cohesion, and spread the culture of human communication skills among beneficiaries.”
