North-Caucasian Muftiates introduce restrictions because of coronavirus

Muftiate of Dagestan has called on mosque Imams to reduce the time for Friday namazes (prayers); and the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic (KBR) has suspended teaching Koran and the Islam basics.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on March 16, the Russia's Spiritual Administrations of Muslims (SAMs, or Muftiates) recommended to introduce a number of restrictions on visiting mosques because of the threat of the spread of coronavirus.

On March 17, the Muftiate of Dagestan urged the Imams of the republic's mosques to reduce the time for Friday prayers and to sanitize crowded places.

The head of Ingushetia, Makhmud-Ali Kalimatov, has stated, at a sitting of the operative headquarters for the prevention of coronavirus, that the republic's authorities will organize a complex work to disinfect mosques before collective prayers.

On March 17, an instruction was posted in the Instagram public of the KBR's SAM, according to which starting from March 23, 2020, the work of all the republic's teachers of Sunday Schools and Imams, working under the KBR's SAM and teaching children the Holy Koran and the basics of Islam, will be suspended.

The SAM of the Republic of Adygea and the Krasnodar Territory has decided to temporarily restrict the work of mosques in Adygea and the Kuban Territory, not to conduct the Friday prayers, and to stop holding optional classes, lessons, lectures and mass events in mosques. Parishioners are advised to refrain from attending collective prayers for a period of restrictions and to perform them at home, and – for people over 60 – to refrain from visiting mosques.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on March 18, 2020 at 01:42 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.