Coronavirus: Mosques in Saudi Arabia’s Mecca set to reopen on June 21
Mosques in Saudi Arabia’s Mecca are preparing to reopen their doors
on June 21 after the coronavirus pandemic forced them to halt prayers for three
months, state television channel al-Ekhbariya reported on Friday.
More than 1,500 mosques will be allowed to reopen in the city if
they follow preventative health measures against COVID-19, according to state
television.
Individuals will have to bring their own prayer mats and maintain
social distancing during prayers.
Ahead of the reopening, the Ministry of Islamic Affairs hired
agencies to sterilize the inside of the buildings completely and accepted
dozens of volunteers who will work to implement precautionary measures inside
the city’s mosques.
Mosques across the Kingdom, except in Mecca, have been allowed to
welcome believers since the end of May.
The interior ministry had later issued a statement saying that it
would be suspending all prayers in all mosques in the city of Jeddah from June
6 until June 20 as part of efforts to curb the coronavirus pandemic in the
country.
The Kingdom has so far reported 150,292 confirmed cases of
COVID-19.
