Muslim Burials in France Face Crisis Amid COVID-19 Deaths and Cemetery Shortages

Muslim families bereaved by covid-19 are facing a real headache. They are confronted with the lack of space dedicated to their religion in cemeteries in France, and the impossibility for their country to receive the deceased for funeral rites according to the Islamic tradition. This is the case of Mohamed, who during his lifetime, had contributed to the "family fund to guarantee the repatriation of his remains and his funeral in the country". But his last wishes cannot be respected, reports France24.

The Algerian authorities have categorically refused repatriation, as the family was unable to present the "non-contagion certificate" of the elderly man. Finally, it is far from his home and a Muslim cemetery that he will be buried in a small committee in Seine-Saint-Denis, where he lived for more than 50 years.

The situation has become worrying for all Muslim families, even for funeral directors. The head of Muslim funeral homes, Al Janaza, explained to France24 that "Morocco and Tunisia have suspended the repatriation of bodies; Algeria makes exceptions, except for covid-19 deaths. For sub-Saharan African countries, there is no more air traffic". "Only cargo flights are maintained to Turkey," he says, adding that he has been "overwhelmed" for a month by calls and the increasing number of deaths. "We have to manage the emotions of families, reassure them and above all, try to bury quickly," as prescribed by the Muslim funeral rite.

He explains how he had to fight to find a place in a Muslim cemetery for his father, who died on April 4 from covid-19, at the age of 87, in a town in Val-de-Marne without a Muslim section. "It took almost 15 days between the death and the burial, while in tradition, it’s three days! It’s inhumane," he laments, recalling that his father’s initial wish was to be buried in Morocco.

With the almost total suspension of these repatriations, "the crisis is revealing the lack of Muslim sections" in France, estimates Mohammed Moussaoui, who estimates these dedicated spaces at "about 600", out of 35,000 cemeteries. But for the Association of Mayors of France, having a denominational section "is not an obligation for a municipality", even if there is a circular dating from 2008 which encourages mayors to do so.

In several cities, municipal cemeteries are full. Some families are turning to inter-community cemeteries or will negotiate with other municipalities, far from their city of residence. But the decision to accept a burial in its cemetery being a prerogative of the mayor, some are "forced" to refuse the requests of families who are not from their municipality.