Senegal says it has detected Covid-19 in dozens of pilgrims returning from their Hajj journey in Mecca arising from tests conducted at Dakar’s Blaise Diagne International Airport where 78 cases of Covid-19 were recorded.

Senegal’s health ministry said it had implemented voluntary COVID-19 screening tests and reimposed the wearing of masks at Dakar’s international airport for returning pilgrims fearing the virus was linked to the deaths of some Mecca pilgrims.

Dakar suspects that the1,300 deaths according to a Saudi authority is down to a respiratory syndrome ailment such as COVID-19, Health Minister Ibrahima Sy said.

“Initially, we thought it was related to heatwaves because the temperature was excessively high, but we realized that there is a respiratory syndrome with the cases of death,” Sy said of the deaths during the hajj pilgrimage, which took place during intense heat.

Saudi officials on Sunday stated more than 1,300 people died during this year’s Hajj pilgrimage. They blamed the fatalities on extremely high summer temperatures.

During events such as the symbolic stoning of the pillars, many people crowd in the same place with no allowance for social distancing. There have been deadly stampedes in the past.

More than 1.83 million Muslims performed Hajj in 2024. Senegal alone sent 12,900 pilgrims.