Saudi Arabia Keeps 24-Hour Curfew in Mecca

TEHRAN (IQNA) – Saudi Arabia's King Salman issued an order to partially lift the curfew in all regions of the kingdom, to become from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., starting Sunday through Wednesday May 13, while keeping a 24-hour curfew in Mecca and in previously isolated neighborhoods.

The order also allowed the opening of some economic and commercial activities, which includes wholesale and retail shops in addition to malls, in the period from 6 to 20 Ramadan, which is from Wednesday April 29 to Wednesday May 13, state news agency (SPA) said early on Sunday, Reuters reported.

The holy month of Ramadan began on Friday with Islam's holiest sites in Saudi Arabia and elsewhere largely empty of worshippers as the coronavirus crisis forced authorities to impose unprecedented restrictions.

During Ramadan, Muslims the world over join their families to break the fast at sunset and go to mosques to pray. But the pandemic has changed priorities, with curbs on large gatherings for prayers and public iftars, or meals to break the fast.

In a rare occurrence in Islam's 1,400-year history, Mecca's Grand Mosque and the Prophet's Mosque in Medina - the religion's two holiest locations - will be closed to the public during the fasting period.

Prayers from inside the mosque at Mecca on the first evening of Ramadan were restricted to clerics, security staff and cleaners, in a ceremony broadcast live on television.