MAKKAH: Most of the Malaysian haj pilgrims who tested positive for Covid-19 before leaving for the Holy Land have fully recovered, and are now joining the other pilgrims to perform the fifth pillar of Islam.
Malaysian Haj Delegation head Datuk Seri Syed Saleh Syed Abdul Rahman said previously 120 pilgrims could not continue their flight when they tested positive during the RT-PCR test, and their spouses also decided to postpone the journey.
He said the PCR test, within 72 hours, was a requirement set by the Saudi Arabian government before the flight.
However, Lembaga Tabung Haji (TH) advised pilgrims to do the test 56 hours before reporting at the departure terminal.
"We found that on some flights, there were haj pilgrims whose PCR test results were positive. Of the 120 pilgrims, 78 have arrived in the Holy Land after being confirmed negative and have completed quarantine.
"The rest will travel on the next flight, while 19 pilgrims are still being quarantined and we are waiting for the results.
"If they are negative, TH will still arrange for flights, as long as these are available," said Syed Saleh.
He added that the Saudi Arabian government had set the last flight of this year's haj season on July 3.
To ensure all the 14,306 haj pilgrims have the opportunity to perform the pilgrimage, Syed Saleh advised them to look after their health and not to be exposed to any gathering before the PCR test.
He also said that all Malaysian haj pilgrims were in good health.
"Most of the health cases referred to the clinics provided by TH are mainly due to respiratory and skin problems brought on by the dry and hot weather. Only a few pilgrims required treatment at the hospitals.
"Fewer pilgrims are being hospitalised compared with previous years, due to the effectiveness of the strict health checks this year, as well as the age factor of pilgrims, who are a younger than usual group," he said. – Bernama