Turkish mosques open doors to communal prayers
Officials have completed preparations in mosques after the Presidency of Religious Affairs (Diyanet), Turkey's top religious authority, ordered a resumption of communal prayers following a two-month hiatus due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
Mosques have been closed to communal prayers since March 16, will only be open for noon, afternoon and Friday prayers. A ban on public morning, evening and night prayers will still remain in place. Mosques will nevertheless remain open for the faithful to pray alone.
The mufti of the northwestern province of Edirne, Emrullah Üzüm, told Anadolu Agency (AA) that people have been asking about the reopening of mosques for some time.
“I hope this decision will boost our morale and spiritual motivation. We will show a stronger stance against the virus thanks to this raised spirit,” he said.
Imam of Edirne’s historical Selimiye Mosque Yusuf Serenli told AA that Friday prayers would be performed in the yards of mosques, while noon and afternoon prayers would be performed inside mosques by observing social distancing.
“Citizens will be asked to bring their own prayer rugs and prayer beads,” he said.
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