UAE announces reopening of mosques, places of worship in industrial areas and labour camps

Mosques and places of worship in industrial areas as well as labour accommodations in the UAE will reopen for worshippers, authorities announced late on Friday night.
Taking to Twitter, the National Emergency Crisis and Disasters Management Authority said: "The General Authority for Islamic Affairs and Endowments and National Emergency Crisis and Disasters Management Authority announce the reopening of mosques and other places of worship in industrial areas and labour accommodations".
The authority, however, stated that the operational capacity of these places of worship will be capped at 30 per cent and that worshippers must strictly adhere to all the precautionary measures announced previously by the authorities to keep the faithful safe from Covid-19. These include mandatory face masks at all times, maintaining physical distance of three metres among worshippers, avoiding gatherings and greetings such as handshakes, sterilising hands before and after visiting the places of worship.
The authority also stated that those who wish to read the Holy Quran at the mosques must do so through their personal electronic devices, bring their own prayer mats and download the contact tracing app AlHosn on their smartphones.
Mosques across the country have been operating at 50 per cent capacity since August 3 but Friday prayers still remain suspended across the country.
The authorities said that they will ensure that all preventive and precautionary measures are implemented in mosques and places of worship before reopening them.
saman@khaleejtimes.com