Saudi Arabia's healthy ministry has confirmed that no COVID-19 cases were recorded among the Haj pilgrims.
That's according to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA), which quoted Dr. Muhammad Al-Abdali, Assistant Minister of Health and official spokesman of the Saudi Ministry of Health, as also confirming that "no diseases were affecting public health".
It comes as the World Health Organisation (WHO) praised the country for putting into place strict safety precautions to prevent a coronavirus outbreak during the five-day pilgrimage.
"I’d like to congratulate the kingdom of Saudi Arabia for the steps it has put in place to make the Hajj as safe as possible this year," Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the WHO's director general, said in Geneva.
"This is a powerful demonstration of the kinds of measures that countries can and must take to adapt to the new normal."
The scaled-down pilgrimage begun on Wednesday, with about 10,000 pilgrims in the Kingdom attending, compared to the usual 2 million.
US President Donald Trump called off plans for renewed military strikes on Iran at the last minute on Thursday, saying negotiations with Tehran had advanced to the highest levels of Iran's leadership and had been approved by a broad coalition of regional powers.
A US jet fired two missiles into the engine room of the tanker Jalveer off Oman on Thursday, US Central Command confirmed, as authorities said the 20 crew members were safe after the third strike on Indian-crewed tankers this week.
British defence minister John Healey quit on Thursday in a dispute over military spending, accusing Prime Minister Keir Starmer of failing to commit the government resources that are needed to defend the country at a time of heightened threat.
A false alarm at the Pentagon following an air quality warning briefly triggered a partial shelter-in-place order on Wednesday at the US military's headquarters, as first responders worked to rule out exposure to hazardous materials, officials said.
The United States will hit Iran "very hard tonight" and will soon take control of the Middle Eastern country's oil and gas infrastructure and markets, US President Donald Trump said on Thursday.
The US and Iran have traded air attacks on Thursday for a second straight day, with President Donald Trump vowing further strikes if Tehran does not immediately agree to a peace deal.
Bahrain's Interior Ministry said on Thursday that an 11-year-old girl suffered minor injuries, while vehicles caught fire and homes were damaged in Hamad Town and the capital Manama after debris fell from Iranian drones that were intercepted and destroyed.
Philippine law enforcement launched on Thursday an investigation into the deaths of two student athletes from a top university basketball team, in a case that has drawn widespread attention in a country where the sport is hugely popular.
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Trump cancels US strikes on Iran, citing progress in talks
US confirms third strike on Indian-crewed tankers this week
UK defence minister Healey quits, says PM Starmer's plans fail to keep country safe
False alarm at the Pentagon triggers brief shelter-in-place order
Trump says US will hit Iran 'very hard', take control of energy infrastructure
US and Iran trade attacks for a second day, undermining shaky ceasefire
Bahrain says debris from intercepted Iranian drones injures child, damages homes
Philippines launches probe into deaths of two athletes from top basketball team
