Share
by Leonardo sgura June 24, 2020 From the evening of July 28, Muslims will celebrate Id Al-Adha, one of the most important religious celebrations of Islam. Five days, dedicated to the symbolic sacrifice of the ram that the prophet Ibrahim dedicated to God, during which no form of asceticism or fasting should be respected. It is in this period that the Hajj takes place, the ritual pilgrimage to Mecca, which usually mobilizes two and a half million faithful but which this year will instead be reserved for only a few thousand.During a virtual press conference, Muhammad Benten, minister of Hajj in Saudi Arabia, hypothesized "about a thousand" people, explaining that the measure was decided to guarantee the social distancing and containment of the Coronavirus, which in the kingdom has made 161 thousand infections and 1300 victims.
It was a planned decision, but it nevertheless had a strong impact on the Islamic world. It is in fact the first time that in its nearly 90 years of history, Saudi Arabia prevents all Muslims from carrying out the pilgrimage to Mecca.
In particular, it was decided that the admitted faithful should not be older than 65, will be of different nationalities, but selected from people already residing in the Saudi kingdom, and who will observe the quarantine both before and after the pilgrimage.
The hajj, at least once in a lifetime, is a duty for every good Muslim, erases all past sins and puts the individual in harmony with the values of the Koran. But Ahmed Al Tayeb, Al Azhar's sheikh, the most authoritative voice of Sunni Islam, applauds the Saudi decision: "It is a wise choice, because the most important purpose of Islamic law is to protect human life." Many Imams are inviting the faithful to donate savings to the poor, often at the cost of long sacrifices, to support the canonical pilgrimage to the "holy city", which has always been forbidden to non-Muslims.
The restrictions on Hajj come precisely on the days when Islam is gradually returning to public prayer after three long months of restrictions.
In recent days, Riyad has decided to reopen the mosques, including in Mecca, which will readmit the faithful from next Sunday, while still prohibiting gatherings of more than 50 people. Egypt has also decided to authorize the reopening of mosques (and Coptic churches) from the end of this week. "But only for daily prayer - explains Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly - because the ban for weekly collective functions remains": a measure that is part of the reopening plan of all public places such as cinemas, restaurants, theaters, cafes, which they are allowed to leave but with the obligation to close at 10 pm and not to exceed the limit of 25% of the capacity. Egypt, which today has over 57 thousand infected and about 2300 deaths per 100 million inhabitants, tries in this way to limit the economic impact of the virus. But the government announces that in the event of a new surge in contagions, it is ready to restore the lockdown. As happened in Nigeria, where the government had planned the reopening of the mosques, but was forced to step back, restoring the blockade indefinitely.