A Muslim pilgrim prays on Mount Mercy on the plains of Arafat outside the holy city of Mecca, Dec. 7, 2008. Saudi health officials are working to minimize the swine flu risks for this year's hajj. (Ahmed Jadallah/Reuters)

Will the hajj be an incubator for swine flu?

Millions walk, pray and eat together during the hajj. How Saudi Arabia is trying to minimize the swine flu risks.

By Caryle Murphy - GlobalPost
Published: November 3, 2009 06:38 ET
Updated: November 4, 2009 16:32 ET

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia — As millions of Muslims begin arriving in Mecca for this year’s pilgrimage, Saudi officials face a unique challenge: how to prevent this sacred rite from becoming an inadvertent incubator and global transmitter of swine flu.

The conditions that will arise during the pilgrimage, or hajj, which officially begins in the last week of November, are the...

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