The President of Ethiopian Islamic Council Sheik Hajji Omar hailed Saudia Arabia after it passed a decision to limit this year’s religious journey of hajj only for a thousand pilgrims who currently reside in the Kingdom.
According to Saudi Press Agency, Grand Mufti Hajji Omar praised Saudi Arabia for its readiness to hold the annual ritual excluding pilgrims outside of the country for the first time in the modern history of the Kingdom as a health precaution of coronavirus.
The Saudi Ministry Of Hajj and Umrah released a statement recently that it has decided to limit the number of people gathering in the holy place of Mecca which has been hosting more than 2 million people every year since it has the responsibility of holding hajj safely and securely.
Thousands of Ethiopians pilgrims travel to Mecca, the Saudi capital every year for annual Islamic pilgrimage which is considered by millions of Muslims in the world as a mandatory duty that must be done at least once in a lifetime.
Sheik Haji Omar Idris assured that the council of Ethiopian Islamic Affairs stands with Saudi Arabia since ” the decision comes in accordance with the Islamic Sharia and Prophetic Sunnah to preserve the human soul from this pandemic.”
In January 2020 Ethiopia and Saudi Arabia had signed an agreement to arrange the Hajj requirements of Ethiopian pilgrims during a six days religious activity which is scheduled on Jul 28, 2020, but as the level of coronavirus spread increases Saudi officials have been releasing statements that ‘very limited people will attend hajj 2020.’
