The Saudi Ministry of Health has reiterated that the ban on slaughtering camels during Hajj will remain in place - with no exceptions - because of the danger posed by Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) coronavirus.
Faisal Al-Zahrani - a spokesman for the ministry - said the ban covered the entire Kingdom of Saudi Arabia during Eidul Azha, Arab News reported on Thursday.
He said the ban on slaughtering of camels was based on a Fatwa issued by the Kingdom's Grand Mufti, who said the camels for sacrifice could be replaced by sheep, cattle or goats.
"We have started dismantling the random camel dens in the holy sites and along the roads between Jeddah, Makkah and Madinah," he added.
Camels have been identified as carriers of the MERS virus, which has infected 1,225 people in Saudi Arabia since June 2012 when it was first discovered by scientists.
Of the total, 521 victims have died, 633 have recovered and 71 are still under treatment, including 16 new cases in the past four days.
Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Agriculture earlier said that 3.3 per cent, or 7,700 out of the 233,000 camels in the Kingdom, were infected by the MERS virus.
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