Saudi Arabia: Hundreds of women serve worshippers at Prophet’s Mosque

Cairo: Over 4,000 women personnel are joining hands to offer various services to female worshippers at the Prophet’s Mosque in the Saudi city of Medina in Ramadan, an official has said.

The month of Ramadan usually marks the peak season for Muslims heading to the Grand Mosque, Islam’s holiest site in Mecca, to perform Umrah or minor pilgrimage, and visit the Prophet’s Mosque, which houses Rawda Al Sharifa where the tomb of the Prophet Mohammad (Peace be Upon Him) is located.

Assistant General President for Women’s Affairs at the Prophet’s Mosque Fatima Al Tuwaijri said 1,300 female employees and 2,852 volunteers are helping fulfil an integrated operation at the holy site in Ramadan.

“Voluntary work is considered a main prop of human resources at the Prophet’s Mosque. This season, the women’s affairs directorate has been supported by 25 voluntary teams comprising a total of 2,852 female volunteers,” the official said.

According to her, around 13,000 female worshippers visit Al Rawda Al Sharifa per day on average. More than 200,000 women were allowed into the site since the start of Ramadan until the 22nd of the month, she said.

Specific, separate times are set for male and female visitors to Al Rawda Al Sharifa after making reservations via the Nusuk app.

Men are permitted to visit Al Rawda Al Sharifa during Ramadan daily from the time running from the noon prayers until the evening prayers. For women, visits are allowed daily twice: after the voluntary night prayers of Taraweeh until 2am; and after the Fajr (dawn) prayers until 11am.

More than 21 million Muslims performed prayers at the Prophet’s Mosque in the first 20 days of Ramadan, up 49 per cent against the same period last year, according to official Saudi figures.

The figure raised to over 169 million the overall numbers of worshippers who performed prayers at the holy site since the beginning of Muharram, the first month in the Islamic lunar calendar.