Saudis urged to stop shop closure during prayers

A prominent Saudi Moslem scholar urged the conservative Gulf Kingdom to end a long-standing practice of forcing shops to shut during prayers, saying such a measure has never been enforced in Islam.

Sheikh Abdullah al Owailit, a member of the government’s religious investigation committee, said evidence showed shops have not been forced to close during prayers since the advent of Islam more than 1,400 years ago.

“Forcing shops to shut during prayer time is a heresy without any basis…this practice has not been sanctioned by Sharia (Islamic law) nor is it accepted by any sound mind,” he said, quoted by the Saudi Aljazeera newspaper. 

“This practice does not make sense….there is legal and religious evidence showing this measure is against Islamic Sharia,” he added. 

Shops and other business outlets in Saudi Arabia, which strictly enforces Islamic Sharia, must close for at least 30 minutes during prayer times every day. 

The measure is enforced by members of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, the most feared law enforcement authority in the world’s top oil exporter and largest Arab economy. 

Commission members are massively deployed in town centres and residential areas to ensure all shops comply with the rule and to punish offenders. 

“Forcing shops to close harms their business and is unfair to all those involved in economic activity…in what way such restrictions serve Islam?,” Owailit said. 

“Islam has never forced businesses to shut during prayer times but some shop owners used to close voluntarily so they can perform prayers,” Owailit said.

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