Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2020 Mar-Apr:34:101631.
doi: 10.1016/j.tmaid.2020.101631. Epub 2020 Mar 14.

The cancellation of mass gatherings (MGs)? Decision making in the time of COVID-19

Qanta A Ahmed  1 , Ziad A Memish  2
Affiliations

The cancellation of mass gatherings (MGs)? Decision making in the time of COVID-19

Qanta A Ahmed et al. Travel Med Infect Dis. 2020 Mar-Apr.

Abstract

Our recommendation, as experts who have monitored health hazards at the Hajj for over 15 years, especially if the situation with COVID-19 continues to escalate globally is that Hajj 2020 will be at risk of being suspended and a means for Muslims to fulfill their rights in the future either personally or even by proxy need to be announced. The same holds true for the Summer 2020 Olympics in Japan and for many other MGs and large gatherings. Decisions in the time of COVID-19 will be closely followed and will be a blueprint for other mass gatherings.

Keywords: COVID-19; Hajj; Mass gathering; Olympics; SARS-CoV-2; Umrah.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
A. Unique Areal picture of the Kaaba in Grand Mosque in Mecca during the process of disinfection B. Usual crowded Kaaba in Grand Mosque in Mecca.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) situation report – 51. https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/coronaviruse/situation-reports/2... (March 11, 2020), Accessed 26th Feb 2020 Google Scholar.
    1. Poon L.L.M., Peiris M. Emergence of a novel human coronavirus threatening human health. Nat Med. 2020 Feb 27 doi: 10.1038/s41591-020-0796-5. [Epub ahead of print] No abstract available. PMID: 32108160. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Zumla A. Mass gatherings medicine: public health issues arising from mass gathering religious and sporting events. Lancet. 2019 May 18;393(10185):2073–2084. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Nakamura S., Wada K., Yanagisawa N., Smith D.R. Health risks and precautions for visitors to the Tokyo 2020 olympic and paralympic games. Trav Med Infect Dis. 2018 Mar - Apr;22:3–7. doi: 10.1016/j.tmaid.2018.01.005. Epub 2018 Feb 15. Review. PMID: 29360525. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Philippe Gautret, Jaffar A. Al-Tawfiq, Van Thuan Hoang COVID 19: Will the 2020 Hajj pilgrimage and Tokyo Olympic Games be cancelled? Trav Med Infect Dis. 10.1016/j.tmaid.2020.101622. - DOI - PMC - PubMed