Saudis to begin mass flu vaccinations as hajj nears

It is strongly urging anyone working on the annual Muslim hajj pilgrimage to Mecca and Medina this month to be vaccinated,said Dr Ziad Memish,the assistant deputy health minister for preventive medicine.

“The priority is for local pilgrims,” he told AFP,referring to the estimated one-million plus Saudis and residents of the kingdom who will embark on the hajj this month.

The vaccines will also be made available — but not mandatory — for health workers,hundreds of thousands of government and private sector workers dealing with the hajj,and residents of the holy cities of Mecca and Medina,he said.

The hajj,which peaks this year during November 25-29,swells the region in western Saudi Arabia with some two million pilgrims from some 80 countries,including more than one million from inside the country.

Deaths have reached 62,most of them involving people with other health problems,Memish said,while confirmed cases in Saudi Arabia are close to 7,000 since the first case was reported on June 3.