CAIRO: Egyptian Hajj pilgrims will be given the vaccine against the H1N1 virus starting Oct. 31, the Ministry of Health's spokesman Abdel Rahman Shahin told Daily News Egypt. The first shipment of the vaccine is scheduled to arrive to Egypt on Oct. 30, and pilgrims will begin flocking to Saudi Arabia on Nov. 8. The health ministry had previously stated that vaccine priority will be given to Hajj pilgrims, followed by medical personnel who work with H1N1 patients, public transportation workers and students with health problems. Shahin assured that the vaccine is harmless and does not have side effects. He added that over 4 million people have been vaccinated around the world and no dangerous side effects were reported. On the other hand, Shahin said that the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Health announced in a recent statement that it will not allow pilgrims with a temperature higher than 38 degrees entry into the country. Saudi health officials also said that governments are responsible for their respective pilgrims and should not allow anyone with a fever to travel. The number of H1N1 cases in Egypt reached 1,118 after seven new cases were reported late Wednesday. The new cases are: a 12-year-old male student in Abdallah Al-Nadim School in Alexandria; a 21-year-old Saudi male student in Modern University for Technology and Information (MTI) in Cairo and five British nationals who recently arrived to Egypt from England. Until print time, the total number of H1N1 cases among students reached 36. On the other hand, the number of recovered cases increased to 1,077, while 38 cases are still in hospitals for treatment.
