UK Mosques Launch Campaign to Promote COVID-19 Vaccine Among Muslim Communities

In northern England, Qari Asim, imam of the Leeds mosque leading the National Council of Mosques and Imams (MINAB), has assured that the anti-Covid-19 vaccines are "halal". This information has been disseminated by a hundred mosques, especially during the Friday prayer.

Being one of the countries most affected by the virus with nearly 95,000 deaths, the United Kingdom is counting on the vaccine to eradicate the scourge and emerge from the ongoing lockdown. Nevertheless, a report from the scientific committee advising the government has highlighted a great suspicion among minorities as well as the white population. Thus, among the most skeptical, 72% are black, of Pakistani or Bangladeshi origin. In addition, nearly 2.8 million Muslims in the UK doubt the content of the vaccine in pork gelatin or alcohol, which are prohibited by Islam.

To better convince the populations, Nighat Arif, a general practitioner based in Chescham, near London, has broadcast the image of her vaccination in her hijab on social networks. Same reaction from Samara Afzal, a doctor in Dudley, in the West Midlands and Imam Nuru Mohammed, imam of the Birmingham mosque.

Even if around 5 million people, especially the elderly and healthcare workers, have already received the first dose of the vaccine in the UK, "there is a lot of work underway to translate information and ensure that it reaches the populations that count," explained Dr. Harpreet Sood, who is leading this campaign against misinformation for the NHS, which has set up a vaccination center in the Birmingham mosque. Moreover, "in this pandemic, no one should be made a scapegoat," stressed Imam Qari Asim.