Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries have been forced to take strict precautionary measures to rein in the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak during Ramadhan.
Sheikh Abdul Aziz Al-Asheikh, Saudi Arabia’s grand mufti,said people would have to perform Taraweeh and Eid prayers at home to preventspreading the virus.
Oman’s Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs issued astatement prohibiting Taraweeh prayer in mosques with an exception for callsfor prayer.
Kuwait’s Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs shared avideo showing Sheikh Raed Al-Hazimi, the imam and khatib, explaining theimportance of abiding by the measures.
“Allah Almighty wanted, through Islamic law, to preserve thefive necessities in Islam: Religion, mind, property, honor and the self.
“If one of these necessities are threatened, exceptions willbe made. The spread of this pandemic threatens the self, therefore, the fatwafrom the Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs came to close mosques,” he said.
Egypt – Ramadhan without Taraweeh
The COVID-19 precautionary health measures, which includethe suspension of Friday prayers in mosques, have made for a somber Ramadanacross Egypt.
“The decisions with regard to group prayers, includingTaraweeh, were taken on the basis of scientific opinion of specialists fromvarious medical institutions, on top of which are the Egyptian Ministry ofHealth and the World Health Organization,” Mohamed Gomaa, the Egyptian ministerof endowments, said on Wednesday. “Both confirmed the dangers of praying ingroups in transmitting COVID-19.”
Pointing out the legal basis on which the decision was made,he said: “Our noble religion taught us that the life of someone praying is moreimportant than praying in a mosque, and that saving lives against all hazardsis one of the essential aims of our noble religion.”
Abdel-Meguid Abdel-Aziz, a history researcher, said multipleaccounts suggested that during the reign of Caliph Al-Aziz Bellah, the Fatimidscanceled Taraweeh prayers in Egypt’s mosques for 10 years.
The Ministry of Endowments introduced a number of measureson Wednesday, one of them being that calls to prayer would be announced only inmosques and not in smaller congregational prayers.
Anyone caught violating the ministry’s instructions would berelieved from working in mosques, with no exception granted to even imams andstaff.
Jordan – Qatayef to be available at local bakeries
The availability of popular Ramadan sweets matters a lot toJordanians during the holy month.
Minister of State for Media Affairs Amjad Adaileh putconsumers at ease when he said that local bakeries could sell the popularfolded pancake called qatayef.
With large group prayers, iftar meals and Taraweeh prayersforbidden, local TV stations are expecting a quantum jump in viewing figures.
Zakaria Sheikh, owner of Amman-based Haqiqa Al-Dowalieh TVstation, said a mix of Ramadan season programs had been planned.
“Our fare will include news and commentary on social andawareness programs, Palestinian news and cultural and religious quizzes,” headded.
Turkey – Pandemic hits Ramadhan traditions in Turkey
Social-distancing measures adopted by Turkey mean Ramadanwill be celebrated this year without the typical large meals shared withfriends, relatives, neighbors, or the poor.
Turkey has banned mass meals during Ramadan as the number ofCOVID-19-related deaths soared.
To prevent large groups of people from gathering, politicalparties and municipalities have been prohibited from setting up tents foroffering iftar and suhoor meals for free. Mosques have been shut for weeks now.
The sale of pide, a Turkish Ramadan traditional flatbread,is regulated by a government decree that requires people to maintain socialdistance in queues at bakeries. The selling time of this Ramadan-specific breadwill end two hours before the iftar meal.
Citizens have also been banned from giving money tomusaharaties, Ramadan drummers who walk through neighborhoods to remind peoplefor their last meal before dawn.
Trips to cemeteries during Ramadan will be strictlyregulated, with officials subjecting visitors to temperature checks.
Lebanon – Refugees stare hunger in the face amid lockdowns
Lebanon’s citizens received a jolt on the eve of Ramadan asthe US dollar’s buying rate touched 3,575 liras and its selling rate 3,625liras at money changers, while the official rate remained 1,515 liras.
Banks in Lebanon are refusing to give customers their dollardeposits and have also stopped returning deposited funds.
The lira’s drop coupled with higher demand for foodstuffsduring Ramadan has resulted in the doubling of prices of fruit and vegetables.
“This year, I’ll settle for only one dish a day, along witha salad and some soup,” said Samar Bakkar, a supermarket shopper in Beirut.”The Ramadan family gathering that happens every year will not take placebecause of the coronavirus. My husband has been receiving half pay for the pastthree months, so we cannot afford the luxuries we were used to.”
Kibbi, the head of the charity fund, which helpsPalestinians in the occupied territories as well as Palestinian refugees inLebanon, said: “People who support this fund have told us they might not beable to donate much because their financial situation has deteriorated. Andthese are just the big traders.”
Ghassan Ayoub, a member of the PLO’s political leadership,said Ramadan would be tough for Lebanon’s Palestinian refugee population,dispersed across 12 official camps and 11 other locations.
“Even before the coronavirus pandemic, the situation washard in the camps. Jobs were virtually non-existent. We faced a crisis, withPalestinians forbidden from working,” he added.
Based on an official Lebanese-Palestinian census, around175,000 refugees live in the camps.
There are 910,000 Syrian refugees in Lebanon who areregistered with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), and theircircumstances are no better.
Abu Mohammed, who lives in a camp in the Bekaa Valley, said:”We used to eat only one meal in the afternoon because that is what we couldafford. Nothing will change now. We will keep on eating one meal but at sunsetfor Ramadan. There’s no interaction between people in the tents.”
Lisa Abou Khaled, UNHCR spokesperson in Lebanon, said:”Three-quarters of Syrian refugees in Lebanon live below the poverty line.Their daily income does not exceed $4. Their situation has become harder withthe COVID-19 crisis.”
She said the UNHCR helped 20 percent of Syrian refugees’families with a monthly amount and provided food assistance to around 40percent of refugees.
Palestine – A return to community values
The arrival of Ramadan in the middle of the COVID-19pandemic has forced major changes in how Palestinians celebrate the month,especially in the holy city of Jerusalem.
Sheikh Muhammad Hussein, the mufti of Palestine, said: “Bythe decision of the Islamic Waqf, there will be no mass prayers in Al-AqsaMosque, no mass iftar meals and even the task of sighting of the crescent to determinethe beginning and end of Ramadan will be given only to specialists from thefatwa department and members of the Palestinian Astronomical Association.”
The Israeli Ministry of Health said shops in places withlarge Muslim populations would not be allowed to open between 6 p.m. to 3 a.m.during Ramadan.
Wasfi Kailani, executive director of the Hashemite Fund forthe Restoration of Al-Aqsa Mosque and Dome of the Rock, said: “This is thefirst time in history that Islam’s third-holiest mosques will be closed for theentire month of Ramadan, which sees attendance sometimes surpassing 250,000during Ramadan Fridays.”
Kailani praised the cooperation between the Islamic Waqf andthe Orthodox Church in distributing packages and cash support to Jerusalem’s needyfamilies, most of whom were also unemployed.
Taraweeh prayers would be broadcast online from Al-AqsaMosque on a daily basis, Waqf officials told Arab News.
Micky Rosenfeld, a spokesman for the Israeli police, saidwhile Ramadan was an important month for Muslims, they must celebrate it thisyear in a minimal and responsible way. “We call upon all the public in thedifferent communities to obey specific laws and regulations of the police andMinistry of Health so that we can keep everyone safe.”
Israel has allowed a maximum of 19 worshippers to meet atany location for religious prayer on the condition of social distancing.
Israeli officials issued fines of up to $1,200 to people whogathered at the Christian quarter to receive the holy fire during Easter. Manyfelt it was an early warning by Israeli health officials to discourage largegatherings.
“Ramadan has become the month of extravagance and huge mealbanquets,” Ata Qaymari, a Jerusalem-based publisher, told Arab News. “Thecoronavirus pandemic will bring Ramadan back to its original values of modesty,prayers and meditation.”
India: People observe Ramadhan in lockdown shadow
With forlorn markets and mosques, the first day of Ramadhanin the national capital on Saturday lacked the usual festive atmosphere aspeople stayed indoors and most shops remained shut in the wake of lockdown dueto coronavirus outbreak.
“There is a festive mood on Ramadhan as people throngthe markets and the mosques have increased footfall. But all this is missingthis time due to the lockdown and people are keeping indoors,” saidBurhanuddin, a resident from Lal Kuan in the walled city.
The eateries and shops in old city areas including ChandniChowk and the neighbourhood of Jama Masjid are normally teeming with not onlythose observing Roza, but also with food lovers from other parts of the city.
But only a few shops were open in these areas on Saturday.
“Due to restrictions of lockdown most of the shops areclosed. There is also confusion regarding opening shops in the eveninghours,” Burhanuddin said, adding, “I hope the government will relaxthe lockdown restrictions so that people do not face hardships in buyingfood”.
Many of the ‘Rozedars’ (those who observer fast duringRamadhan) complained that ‘khajla-feni’, a staple during this period for’sehri’ (food taken in early hours), is unavailable.
“Khajla (a deep fried food item) mixed with milk amdsugar is a complete diet. But, we are not getting it from shops famous for itlike Sri Bhawan near Jama Masjid and Chenaram,” said another resident.
As all religious places are closed due to the lockdown,people could not visit mosques for prayers.
“Islam has the option of offering Namaz at home underunavoidable situations. So, people need to stay at home and offer Namaz andread Tarabi(ritual prayers) during Ramadhan, by following social distancingnorm as there is threat of epidemic,” said Shahi Imam of Fatehpuri mosqueMufti Mukarram Ahmed.
Prominent clerics of the city including Shahi Imam of Jama Masjid Syed Ahmed Bukhari and bodies like Delhi Waqf Board have appealed the people to offer Namaz at their homes during Ramadhan and follow social distancing and other lockdown guidelines. “Lockdown itself is a big challenge. With Ramadhan it is even a bigger problem as we are unable to go to the mosques. But the situation is unavoidable with coronavirus infecting a large number of people,” said Shahid, president of resident welfare association of old city locality Gali Darziyan.
For many, a total halt of commercial and industrial activities during lockdown in the city has also led to financial constraints. (With India inputs from PTI)