Jakarta (ANTARA) - At least 95.7 percent or as many as 95,702 Indonesian Hajj pilgrims have met the health requirements for making the pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia, according to the Health Ministry.
"As of this afternoon, 95,702 people out of 100,051 pilgrims who were included in the 2022 Hajj quota have done the health checks," head of the Hajj Health Center at the ministry, Budi Sylvana, informed at an online press conference, accessed from here on Thursday.
He said the center is still checking the health of pilgrims who have not met the requirements.
Furthermore, 95 percent of the total pilgrims have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, while 95.7 percent have received the meningitis vaccine.
"We are optimistic, if God wills, hopefully, by the day of departure, all pilgrims will have completed their vaccination," the official said.
Pilgrims who still have not met the vaccine requirements by the departure time may not be able to leave, he added.
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"It is a mandatory requirement set by the Saudi Arabia government," he pointed out.
The Saudi Arabian authorities also require all pilgrims to bring negative COVID-19 PCR test results, with samples taken at least 72 hours before departure, Sylvana noted.
Anyone whose test results are not available will not be dispatched, he said.
The Hajj Health Center is making efforts to anticipate this by disseminating information regarding the time of the PCR examination to pilgrims.
Furthermore, the government will delay the departure of pilgrims whose PCR tests show positive results.
"According to our coordination with the Religious Affairs Ministry, the pilgrims will be included in the next dispatched batch (for this year’s Hajj)," the Hajj Health Center head informed.
If the pilgrims’ PCR tests are still positive on the day of departure of the last batch, it is possible that their departure will be delayed to 2023, he added.
"Thus, the PCR test is obligatory to enter Saudi Arabia," he stressed.
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