Saudi King approves tarawih prayers without public attendance at holiest mosques

Saudi Arabia has recorded 11,631 coronavirus cases and 109 deaths, the health minister said Tuesday. 

To give Muslims time to shop ahead of Ramadan, which begins later this week, the kingdom will ease curfew hours, the state news agency SPA reported. Earlier this month, Saudi authorities placed the capital Riyadh and other major cities under a 24-hour curfew. 

Across the region, Muslim governments have rolled out new measures, including the cancellation of iftar meals and congregational prayers, to keep the coronavirus in check during the fasting month of Ramadan. 

Religious authorities in some countries have asked worshippers to avoid gathering publicly for the first sighting of the crescent moon this week, which is used to mark the start of the holy month. 

The Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem’s Old City, Islam’s third holiest site where the Prophet Muhammad is believed to have ascended to heaven, will remain closed.