Makkah Haram, Masjid e Nabawi to be closed in night

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Makkah Haram, Masjid e Nabawi to be closed in night

The latest move came a week after the Saudi government imposed temporary ban on Umrah travel due to Coronavirus threat

Thursday March 5, 2020 11:27 PM, ummid.com News Network

Makkah: The government in Saudi Arabia Thursday said the Grand Mosque in Makkah (Makkah Haram) and Masjid e Nabawi in Madina will remain closed during the night starting today.

The areas surrounding the Kaaba where pilgrims walk around it seven times and between the hills of Safa and Marwah where they perform a ritual called Sa’ee will also remain closed until the Umrah ban is lifted.

"Prayers will be performed inside the Grand Mosque", the government said.

The closure was announced as part of measures to prevent the spread of coronavirus in the Kingdom.

Ban on Umrah travel

The latest move came a week after the Saudi government imposed temporary ban on Umrah travel due to Coronavirus threat.

Bringing food and drink into the mosques is also prohibited and access to Zamzam containers will temporarily be stopped.

The Sacred Chamber in the Prophet’s Mosque in Madinah which houses the graves of Prophet Muhammad and his two companions, Abu Bakr Siddiq and Omar ibn Al-Khattab, will also be closed off to worshippers, Arab News reported.

'Rarest of Rare Moment'

Millions of people from all across the world on almost daily basis travel to Makkah and Madina - the two holiest places of the Muslim world, to perform Umrah.

This is the rarest of rare moment in the history when entry of pilgrims in the two holy cities will be banned. Health apprehensions were earlier raised during the outbreak of Swine Flu in 2009 ahead of Haj. However, the Saudi Arabia made the elaborate arrangement so that those performing Haj are in no way harmed.

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