[UPDATED] Temporary ban on umrah amid 9 new Covid-19 clusters: Khairy 

KUALA LUMPUR – Following the detection of nine Covid-19 clusters involving pilgrims, Malaysia will temporarily suspend the umrah pilgrimage starting January 8, said Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin.

He added that there will be no trips for umrah pilgrimage until a later date, and that the booking of new flight tickets for such trips has also been postponed effective today.

“Pilgrims leaving for the Holy Land on January 1 to 7 will be allowed to continue with their journey.

“However, they have to undergo quarantine at quarantine stations or hotels that have been identified as a quarantine station by Nadma (National Disaster Management Agency) when they arrive in Malaysia,” he said in a press conference this morning.

According to his ministry, 1,306 pilgrims tested positive of the 11,108 returning from umrah between October and December 30, and of the nine clusters, five involved index cases with the Omicron variant, one presumptive Omicron cluster and three non-Omicron.

He said large-scale gatherings involving pilgrims from various countries while they were in the Gulf kingdom have exposed them to high risks of contracting Covid-19 infections, including the Omicron variant.

“This situation makes it difficult for pilgrims to comply with the SOPs (standard operating procedures) set by the Malaysian government.

“They may also have been infected while in Saudi Arabia but were still in the incubation period of the infection, causing the screen tests done before returning to Malaysia to be negative.”

Khairy added that the large number of Malaysian umrah arrivals of approximately 800 to 1,000 per day, via four special flights, further increases the risk of importing Covid-19 cases and the Omicron variant into the country. 

Meanwhile, he said home quarantine will no longer be an option as it would be compulsory for umrah pilgrims to undergo quarantine at designated quarantine centres or hotels for seven days upon return effective January 3.

“Most pilgrims who return from performing umrah have applied to undergo quarantine at home for a period of seven days.

“However, since there has been non-compliance of SOPs by umrah pilgrims, Covid-19 cases among them have led to the spread of infection among family members.

“Non-compliance with quarantine procedures at home has also exposed their family members, neighbours and relatives who visit them to the virus.”

Khairy added that quarantined individuals are not allowed to receive visitations during the quarantine period to prevent the transmission of Covid-19 infections to family members and subsequently to the community.

“Failure to comply with orders issued by the authorised officer under Section 3 of the Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases Act 1988 (Act 342) is liable to legal action under the same act.”

Those who have made arrangements to go for the umrah, including paid for the package, but are unable to go following the government’s temporary suspension will be refunded or their travel rescheduled, he said.

He added that discussions are in progress between the Health Ministry and the Tourism, Arts and Culture Ministry as well as the Umrah and Haj Travel Agencies' Association to assist the affected prospective pilgrims.

“I'm very sorry to those who want to go for the umrah, but the harm is public health... no Muslim minister wants to postpone the umrah, but this is a serious matter. This is not a tweet on social media, not a video on TikTok, this is about life.”

Asked on the cost of the mandatory quarantine that will be imposed on umrah pilgrims, Khairy said the pilgrims have the option of either bearing the cost of undergoing the quarantine at hotels listed by the ministry or to undergo the quarantine at the government-provided centres.

In addition, Khairy said a risk evaluation of the Omicron variant situation in Malaysia and countries abroad, particularly in Saudi Arabia, will be carried out periodically to decide when umrah activities will be allowed to resume.

Khairy, who is also Rembau MP, said the suspension of umrah activities is expected to help in reducing the risk of the new variant from spreading in the country and to slow the increase of Covid-19 cases.

“This measure is also expected to give the government the opportunity and space to carefully plan and make detailed preparations before allowing umrah activities again.” – The Vibes, January 1, 2022