https://arab.news/p45an
- Move is part of measures to reduce spread of COVID-19 during the holy month
- I’tikaaf, staying in a mosque for few days, to be suspended
RIYADH: Iftar and suhur meals will not be allowed to take place inside mosques in Saudi Arabia during Ramadan, the Minister of Islamic Affairs said on Tuesday.
The move is part of measures to reduce the spread of COVID-19 during the holy month, which starts next week.
Sheikh Abdullatif Al-Asheikh said the practice of i’tikaaf, which consists of staying in a mosque for a number of days, will also be suspended.
He said that matters related to holding tarawih and qiyam prayers in mosques would be announced later.
Meanwhile, the General Presidency for the Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques said the daily capacity of the Grand Mosque in Makkah would be raised to 50,000 pilgrims and 100,000 worshippers.
The decision follows an announcement on Monday that the authority would issue Umrah permits to those who have received the COVID-19 vaccine, from the start of Ramadan.
Sheikh Abdulrahman Al-Sudais, head of the Presidency of the Two Holy Mosques, said the inoculation is a requirement for entering the Grand Mosque and the Prophet’s Mosque.