The Ministry of Religious Endowments (Awqaf) has announced preventing holding Ramadan Iftar tables this year.
In a Saturday statement, the ministry urged all charities and individuals who host the tables to instead provide the needy and underprivileged with money or food commodities ahead of the holy month.
The Iftar tables offer the needy and underprivileged free meals at the time of the Maghrib prayer (early evening) during the holy month of Ramadan. They are among the traditions of Ramadan that hundreds of charities, mosques, and rich individuals keep during the holy month.
The National Research Institute of Astronomy and Geophysics said last week that the first day of Ramadan will be on 24 April, according to the Middle East News Agency.
Last week, the Ministry of Religious Endowments extended the suspension of daily and Friday prayers at all mosques nationwide for a further two weeks. The move comes as part of the state’s precautionary efforts to curb further spread of the novel coronavirus (Covid-19).
The ministry had previously said that mosques will not be reopened until the coronavirus pandemic is deemed over with no new positive cases reported.
The Ministry of Health registered 85 new coronavirus infections and 5 deaths on Saturday, bringing the country’s total to 1,070 and 71 deaths.
