By Ishaya Ibrahim
Unlike some states in the North that have approved the opening of mosques for Eid prayers, Saudi Arabia, the bastion of Islam , has said that mosques would remain closed during the period.
Governor Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano State says religious houses could open up, even though his state has the second highest number of coronavirus cases in Nigeria. Bauchi and Jigawa states have also relaxed restrictions on religious places.
On Friday, May 22, Saudi Arabia asked its population to adhere to safety guidelines to avoid the spread of the novel coronavirus.
The United Arab Emirate (UAE) has also banned opening of mosques during the Eid festival, which marks the end of the holy fasting month of Ramadan.
Saudi Islamic Affairs Minister, Abdullatif al-Sheikh, gave the instructions not to have Eid prayers in mosques.
“Muslims will hold the Eid prayer at home because of the pandemic,’’ the Saudi Press Agency cited Sheikh Abdul Bari al-Thubaiti, the prayer leader, of the Prophet’s Mosque in Medina, as saying in the Friday sermon.
