MAKKAH: Four foreign pilgrims have died of swine flu, the Health Ministry announced on Saturday. It identified the dead as a Moroccan woman, a Sudanese man, an Indian man (all aged 75), and a 17-year-old Nigerian girl, the Saudi Press Agency reported.

The ministry said the four had not followed “recommended procedures, especially vaccination against H1N1.” The Sudanese pilgrim, who died in Madinah, developed symptoms of the disease four days after arriving in the Kingdom. The man failed to visit Saudi health facilities after contracting the virus.

The Nigerian girl got the disease two days after arriving in Madinah. “She was admitted to hospital with pulmonary failure and high sugar level, which demanded quick medical intervention. She was taken to the intensive care unit and given necessary treatment but died the same day because of her worsening condition,” the ministry said.

The Indian pilgrim, who died in Makkah, was suffering from heart diseases in addition to swine flu. “He was admitted to intensive care unit and given necessary medication but failed to recover.” The Moroccan woman who died in a Madinah hospital was also suffering from liver cancer, the ministry pointed out.