Manama: Eid prayers and sermons in Qatar should not exceed 15 minutes to avoid exposing worshippers in open areas to scorching temperatures, the Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs has said.
It stipulated that prayer leaders should deliver two short sermons after performing the prayer and avoid exceeding the prescribed time, which is usually a period of 30 minutes.
A senior official of the Mosques Committee said that the decision was taken in the interest of the worshippers, who will be gathering in large numbers for the Eid prayers, Qatari daily The Peninsula reported.
The ministry's mosques committee has already sent messages to all imams informing them about the decision.
The instructions to help worshippers avoid heat exhaustion are unprecedented in Qatar's history, although labourers working in open areas have for years been spared the scorching temperatures during the summer months under a strict regulation that bans companies from forcing them to work in the early afternoon.
The high temperatures and humidity prevailing since June are expected to continue until mid-September.
Several prominent Islamic scholars have been assigned to lead the special morning prayers on the first day of Eid Al Fitr, marking the end of Ramadan.
The prayers will be held at 5.30am, about one and half hours after the Fajr (dawn) prayers. The weather is expected to be hot by that time, particularly in the prayer grounds.
The ministry has made arrangements for the prayers at 219 mosques and prayer grounds across the country.
Eid Al Fitr will fall on either on Thursday or Friday, depending on the sighting of the moon.
