Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa mosque compound reopened to Muslim worshippers and visitors on Sunday after a two-and-a-half-month coronavirus closure, but authorities imposed some precautions as health officials warned of an uptick in local infections.
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The resumption of prayers at Islam's third-holiest site capped a somber period for Jerusalem's Muslims, who this year marked the holy fasting month of Ramadan and the Eid al-Fitr holiday without their usual daily visits to Al-Aqsa and the adjoining Dome of the Rock.
"After they opened the mosque, I feel like I can breathe again. Thanks be to God," Jerusalem resident Umm Hisham said through a face mask, her eyes tearing up, after entering the compound for dawn prayers with hundreds of other Muslims.
The Council of Islamic Waqf cited the slowed local spread of COVID-19 in lifting entry restrictions and reopening the compound's iconic shrines, which shut on March 15.
But the council imposed some measures to reduce the risk of contagion, as new cases in Israel spiked in recent days.
Worshippers must wear face masks and bring personal prayer rugs should they wish to pray inside the shrines or on the compound's outdoor grounds.
There did not appear to be a limit on the number of people allowed into the 35-acre compound, known to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary and to Jews as the Temple Mount.
Around 700 worshippers were present for dawn prayers. Later in the morning, a group of Orthodox Jews, accompanied by Israeli police, entered the compound through a visitor entrance adjacent to Judaism's holy Western Wall.
There have been 17,000 coronavirus cases and 284 deaths in Israel, and 386 cases and three deaths in the West Bank.
In Saudi Arabia, tens of thousands of mosques reopened for the first time in more than two months, with worshipers ordered to follow strict guidelines to prevent the spread of the coronavirus as Islam's holiest site in Mecca remained closed to the public.
The Saudi government prepared for the reopening of around 90,000 mosques after sanitizing prayer rugs, washrooms and shelves holding copies of the Quran, the Muslim holy book.
The Ministry of Islamic Affairs said millions of text messages were sent to people in multiple languages to inform them about the new rules for public prayer, which include keeping a two-meter (six-foot) distance between people during prayer, wearing face masks at all times and abstaining from greeting one another with handshakes or hugs.
Children under 15 years-old were not being allowed inside mosques. The elderly and those with chronic conditions were being told to pray at home. People are also being advised to perform the mandatory ablution at home since washrooms at mosques will be closed, to use hand sanitizers and to bring their own prayer rugs and copies of the Quran.
The restrictions call for mosques to open just 15 minutes before each of the five daily prayers and to close 10 minutes after they conclude. Friday sermons and prayers are to last no longer than 15 minutes.
Also on Sunday, Saudi Arabia also lifted a ban on domestic air travel and permitted some public sector workers to resume office work again, though full attendance will not be allowed until mid-June.
The new measures come as Saudi Arabia and other countries around the world begin to loosen restrictions and stay-at-home orders following weeks of curfews and lockdowns.
However, the Grand Mosque in Mecca, which houses the cube-shaped Kaaba that Muslims around the world pray toward, will remain closed to the public. The city has been under a strict lockdown for several weeks. The mosque in Medina where the Prophet Muhammad is buried will be partially opened to the public to pray outside.
