Brussels Muslims Increasingly Choose Local Burials Over Repatriation

This practice imposed by the constraints related to Covid-19 tends to undermine the tradition of finding the final resting place on the land of origin.

During the crisis, Muslims had no choice but to bury their loved ones in Brussels cemeteries due to the impossibility of repatriating the bodies of the deceased, recalls Belga, estimating at nearly 1,100 the number of people who were buried in the Evere cemetery.

This year, despite the easing of health restrictions and the reopening of borders, the observation remains the same. Several families have continued to bury their loved ones far from the land of origin.

For Rachida, a Moroccan resident in Brussels cited by the press agency, this allows her to be close to them. "I know she is here. I don’t have to take a plane (to go and pay my respects), because we only go to Morocco once a year. Some can’t even go there," she said after paying tribute to her mother’s grave.