LITTLE ROCK — Iran will set age restrictions on its citizens seeking to join the annual Muslim hajj pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia in an effort to avert the spread of swine flu, the state-run Mehr news agency reported.
"People over the age of 65 and children under 12 will be banned from going to the hajj," the news agency reported, citing the head of Iran's hajj organization, Mostafa Khaksar Ghahroudi.
Believers who have certain lung, heart or kidney diseases or other severe illnesses will also be stopped from performing the pilgrimage, which starts in November, the report said. The ban also applies to pregnant women.
Iran has already canceled all flights to Saudi Arabia during the current holy fasting month of Ramadan for the umrah, or minor pilgrimage, to limit the spread of swine flu, Agence France-Presse reported. The main pilgrimage, the hajj, draws hundreds of thousands of Iranian pilgrims every year.
Unlike the hajj pilgrimage, which takes place once a year, Muslims are allowed to perform the umrah anytime in Saudi Arabia, the birthplace of Islam and home to its holiest shrines.
Egypt, the most populous Arab country, has also banned the elderly and children from traveling to Saudi Arabia to perform the umrah.
Front Section, Pages 7 on 08/31/2009