The prayer will not be celebrated Friday at the Grand Mosque of Paris (GMP) and "until further notice" , due to the epidemic of coronavirus, other large mosques may also be affected, announced on Monday the GMP and the CFCM.
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"In accordance with the decisions of the Ministry of Solidarity and Health, and according to the religious advice given by our imams, the great Friday prayer (salat aljumu'a) will not be celebrated at the Grand Mosque, until further notice " Said the Great Mosque in a statement Monday. "It is essential that the Muslim faithful actively participate, in their behavior, in slowing the spread of the epidemic," added the rector, Chems-eddine Hafiz. He added that the Great Mosque of Paris "continues to welcome the faithful for the five daily prayers but urges them to perform them in private".
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For its part, the French Council for Muslim Worship (CFCM) "calls on mosques likely to be affected by the new prohibition measure" for the gathering of more than 1,000 people to "approach the competent prefectural services to (...) (a) decision to possibly cancel Friday prayers , ” in another statement.
This could concern, in Ile-de-France, "undoubtedly the great mosque of Ivry and the two mosques of Argenteuil" , affirmed to AFP the president of CFCM. According to him, each of the places of worship likely to be concerned will meet and make its decision by Friday. "Cancellation is the simplest decision," he said.
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