Ceuta Mosques Begin Phased Reopening After COVID-19 Closure

The delegate of the Islamic Commission of Spain (CIE), Hamido Mohamed, in a statement to Europa Press, indicated that only the small mosques are initially allowed to reopen. Then, the five largest, including that of Sidi Embarek, the main one in the city, will follow, provided that the health measures are guaranteed.

The faithful must respect the barrier gestures, in particular the wearing of masks. They must also perform their ritual ablutions at home and bring their own prayer mat. To respect physical distancing, the mosques will open their doors earlier in order to manage the flow of entry and will close immediately after each prayer.

Hand washing devices with a solution of water and bleach or hydroalcoholic gel must be installed at the entrances of the mosques. Similarly, the spaces used for prayer, as well as the most touched objects in the mosques, must be "regularly" and daily disinfected.

The mosques remained closed throughout the holy month of Ramadan and the faithful were unable to celebrate the collective prayer outdoors, as was the case in previous years.

The community prayer for Eid al-Adha, which will take place on July 31, has also been canceled. The government of Ceuta also does not plan to set up the traditional tents in different neighborhoods of the periphery, intended for the slaughter of animals for Eid al-Adha.

It should be noted that the churches in the city did not close during the state of health emergency. The Hebrew synagogue reopened on May 23, when Ceuta entered phase 2 of the deconfinement, and the Hindu temple did the same on June 1.