Indonesia to send 'umrah' pilgrims to Saudi Arabia despite Omicron threat

Muslims gather to pray around the Kaaba, the holiest shrine in the Grand Mosque complex in Saudi Arabia's holy city of Mecca, to mark the end of the fasting month of Ramadan, on May 13, 2021. - AFP

JAKARTA, Dec 5 (Jakarta Post/ANN): The government will allow pilgrims to travel to Saudi Arabia for umrah (minor haj) later this month, a move that experts say is risky given the threat of the emerging Omicron variant, which has been detected in the gulf country.

The Religious Affairs Ministry’s haj and umrah director general Hilman Latief said there were no plans to restrict umrah pilgrims at the moment and the first batch of pilgrims were expected to depart in the middle of this month.