Saudi Closes 52 Mosques Over Past Five Days

Jeddah, MINA – Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Call and Guidance temporarily has closed 52 mosques across the country over the past five days as coronavirus cases continue to climb.

Of those closed mosques, 38 had previously completed sanitization procedures to ensure the health of worshippers, Arab News reported on Saturday.

Imams of the mosques are also joining efforts to combat the virus, urging worshippers to take precautionary measures seriously and calling it a “religious and national duty.”

The ministry has intensified its efforts to monitor all mosques facilities where Friday prayers are held in an attempt to limit the spread of the virus.

Mosque supervisors and employees, in coordination with security authorities, NGOs and charitable institutions, are organizing the entry for worshippers into the mosques and checking temperature on entry. Sanitizers and hygiene tools are also provided by local companies.

In a social media awareness program launched by the ministry, preachers have been educating the community about disease prevention within Islamic teachings.

The Jeddah municipality has also stepped up efforts to combat the virus.

Jeddah carried out 4,523 inspection tours within 19 submunicipalities to make sure facilities and commercial centers were adhering to the precautionary measures.

“The field teams have doubled the number of inspection tours,” said Mohammed Al-Mutairi, the undersecretary for submunicipalities.

He said 168 violations were recorded and 140 facilities were closed as a result of the inspection tours. The team visited restaurants, cafes, cinemas, indoor entertainment centers, independent indoor games venues, shopping centers, wedding and event halls. (T/RE1)

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)