Saudi king says Eid safety measures conform with Islamic teachings

King Salman thanks Saudi public for bearing with 'painful but necessary measures' that could take some joy out of Eid Al Fitr

King Salman has urged adherence to “painful but necessary” orders to contain the coronavirus, saying the official measures conform to principles at the heart of Islam to preserve communal well-being.

The number of people infected in the kingdom surged over the last 11 days, with more than 2,000 cases recorded daily, as the authorities relaxed bans on movement then tightened them again for the Eid Al Fitr celebration.

In an Eid message, the monarch said that “safety requires from everybody to understand this special circumstance preventing Muslims from going to pray for Eid and to exchange visits”.

He said obeying the restrictions means “adhering to our rightful religion and its teachings amid downturns and contagions” with “sympathy and compassion”.

The intervention, in personal terms, by King Salman comes after several officials in Saudi Arabia said that widespread breaches of orders for people to stay home are undermining the government’s efforts to halt the coronavirus spread.

Saudi Arabia is the world’s top oil exporter and has the largest population among the six-member Gulf Co-operation Council.

The Saudi Health Ministry said on Sunday that nine more people died from the coronavirus, bringing the death toll from the contagion to 390. Another 2,399 cases were recorded in the last 24 hours.

Official data show 72,560 people have been infected in the kingdom, with no signs of deceleration in daily recorded cases.

King Salman thanked those who would be spending Eid at home “committed with the utmost awareness and responsibility to the social distancing measures”.

“Some of the precautionary measures might be painful, but they are necessary,” King Salman said in a letter, read out on television by Information Minister Majid Al Qasibi.

King Salman praised citizens and residents alike for "loyally supporting the pre-emptive and treatment measures taken by the respective authorities in our country”.

Elsewhere in the GCC Kuwait said eight more people died from the coronavirus in the last 24 hours, bringing the death toll to 156. Cases jumped by another 838 to reach 21,302.

Oman said 513 more people were infected, representing a significant jump in daily cases. Total cases in the sultanate officially stand at 7,770. 

Qatar announced another 1,501 cases and two new deaths. The Health Minister said total deaths on the island from the coronavirus have reached 23 and there were 34,521 people with "active" infections.