The Supreme Council of Kenya Muslims has commended Jamia Mosque in Nairobi for suspending prayers over coronavirus.
Acting Supkem chairman Hassan ole Naado said that the steps taken by Jamia are commendable as the world applies all means to fight the virus that had by Thursday killed 9,303 people worldwide and infected 227,682.
Jamia, the biggest mosque in East Africa, announced the suspension of all congregational prayers until further notice.
Its committee secretary-general Abdul Bary Hamid said they were complying with the government directive on limiting public gatherings as a safety measure against coronavirus.
He urged the faithful to pray in less congested spaces.
Naado, who spoke to the Star on Thursday, called on others mosques to follow suit.
“There was a time in the Koran where people were faced with the imminent threat and what they did was to cancel everything until it (threat) was over. Even this should happen to us until this virus is over,” he said.
He urged the faithful to dedicate special prayers (Qunut) for the coronavirus to be contained.
Early this month, Saudi Arabia suspended the issuance of visas to Islam’s holiest sites for the Umrah pilgrimage due to the outbreak of coronavirus.
Hajj is the annual religious pilgrimage to Mecca undertaken by 2-3 million people. This year’s Hajj will run from July 28 to August 2.
