Morning prayers at the Jama Masjid mosque on Aug. 1 in New Delhi, India. Photo: Naveen Sharma/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images
Eid al-Adha, a major Muslim festival, was observed by thousands over the weekend — although the coronavirus pandemic has thwarted traditional celebrations.
The big picture: The United Arab Emirates closed mosques for Eid prayers, the hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia was scaled down, Oman reinstated a nighttime curfew, and Lebanon and Iraq recently entered two-week lockdowns, the Wall Street Journal reports.
- The pandemic had made it "harder for many to fulfill the religious tradition of purchasing livestock" for the Feast of Sacrifice, PBS reports.
- Muslims around the world stayed at home or with relatives for the holiday.
Of note: Some of the earliest outbreaks of the virus were traced to religious services or pilgrimages. Countries including Saudi Arabia "reported a big jump in cases following the Eid al-Fitr festival in May after restrictions were eased," WSJ reports.
- The Saudi Health Ministry said that no coronavirus infections have been reported from the small number of pilgrims allowed to perform the hajj this year, per PBS.
Go deeper: Muslim health care workers balance Ramadan fasting with battling coronavirus