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All able bodied Muslims are required to make at least one major pilgrimage to Mecca during their lifetime, at the time of the hajj. This is known as the fifth pillar of Islam, and is one of the duties incumbent upon all Muslims.
The faithful may also make `lesser pilgrimages’, called omra (or sometimes Umrah), at other times of the year. These minor pilgrimages don’t absolve the faithful of making the hajj journey.
The hajj is still more than four months away (it occurs in November this year), but many Muslims are making these lesser pilgrimages over the summer.
Tunisia, a north African nation of about 10 million, is calling halt to these trips due to concerns over swine flu. No decision has been made regarding the hajj in the fall.
A hat tip to Mojo on the Flu Wiki for this link.
Tunisia suspends Mecca pilgrimages
Religious affairs minister says suspension of omra trips, annual hajj due to swine flu is necessary decision.
TUNIS - Tunisia suspended Saturday lesser pilgrimages to Mecca for fear of swine flu infection, but reserved judgment on whether the main hajj pilgrimage should be undertaken in November.
As well as the annual hajj, which all Muslims are required to make once in a lifetime if they have the means, the faithful can also make a lesser pilgrimage to the holy places, known as omra, at any time of the year.
The suspension of omra trips was "a necessary decision" which does not contradict Muslim doctrine, said Tunisian religious affairs minister Boubaker El Akhzouri.
He was speaking to a crisis cell set up by Tunisia's health ministry, and said the rapid spread of the A(H1N1) pandemic meant that officials should "reflect on whether or not to postpone the hajj" later this year.
In the meantime, Tunisia has toughened selection criteria for hajj candidates, doubling medical checks and ruling out the elderly or chronically sick on the grounds they would be "more exposed" to infection.
Some 30,000 Tunisians complete the omra pilgrimages, with peak numbers making the journey during the Holy month of Ramadan, which is this year due to begin some time in late August.
The suspension of the omra will affect travel agencies who specialise in pilgrimage trips, with BusinessNews website estimating the loss of revenue to the industry at around 150 million dinars (more than 80 million euros or 120 million dollars).
Tunisia has announced just three infections to-date, but with millions of Muslims preparing to converge on Mecca, the whole Islamic world is concerned about the pilgrimage season's potential to make the pandemic far worse.
