TEHRAN- Health Minister Hassan Qazizadeh Hashemi warns against the entry of corona virus from Saudi Arabia into Iran.

Qazizadeh Hashemi who was speaking on the occasion of the opening of academic year at Tehran University of Medical Sciences said on Saturday that the corona virus has been present in Saudi Arabia before Hajj pilgrimage, IRNA reported.

“Given that some of the Iranians are now hospitalized in Saudi Arabia, the risk of the spread of the virus into the country will be increased,” Qazizadeh Hashemi said.

The health minister indicated that the current conditions in Saudi Arabia make it necessary to tighten up the entry process at the country’s airports as pilgrims arrive home from Mecca.

On September 24, a stampede resulted in the deaths of at least 717 pilgrims and injuries to 863 others during the annual Hajj pilgrimage in Mecca. About 133 Iranians were killed, 99 were injured and over 300 were reported missing.

Qazizadeh Hashemi said the Health Ministry set up a committee, immediately after the stampede tragedy, to move dead bodies and the injured to the country and prevent corona virus into Iran.

Qazizadeh Hashemi also said that a health expert from the ministry will be assigned to each flight returning from Saudi Arabia to check the health conditions of the pilgrims.

Pilgrims with fever and respiratory problems will be separated from the rest, he added.

He called on pilgrims to see their doctors two weeks after their arrival if they have any symptoms like fever, cough or else.

Deputy Health Minister Ali-Akbar Sayari also said that preventive measures will be taken at 19 airports across the country on Sunday upon the arrival of the first group of the pilgrims, Mehr news agency reported.

A corona virus is a kind of common virus that causes an infection in your nose, sinuses, or upper throat. More than 100 people have died from Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS), which first appeared in 2012 in Saudi Arabia and then in other countries in the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and Europe. 
PT/P