Children banned from State Mosque

The Imam Mohammed bin Abdul Wahab Mosque, commonly known as The State Mosque, has confirmed that children under the age of seven are banned during Ramadan.

The ban however is during the Isha (evening prayers) and Taraweeh prayers (the last evening prayer.)

The mosque has many international Imams here for Ramadan: Taraweeh Imams Schedule

“We are sorry to make this decision, but we have received several complaints from worshippers about the disturbance caused by young children,” Shaikh Malallah Bin Abdul Rahman Al Jaber, the Mosque Directorate, said.

“We are forced to impose the ban both at the men’s prayer hall and at the women’s prayer hall, to ensure that worshippers are not annoyed by the brouhaha of underage children. We urge all parents to comply with the new rule,” the Qatari daily Al Sharq reported him as saying on Sunday.

Mosques are meant to be for worshipping God and must not be turned into anything else, he said.

Worshippers have complained that the large halls have been turned into playgrounds or nurseries for children.

“We have a full set of rules on how people should behave inside the mosque and we have urged all worshippers to respect the place by following the rules as there should be full serenity,” Al Jaber said.

“All those who come into the mosque must make sure their mobiles are switched off and that they place their shoes on the shoe racks at the entrance. They must be adequately dressed and their clothes must be clean. No one is allowed to bring in food or beverages and everyone is expected not to disturb other worshippers,” he said.

The mosque security staff will be strict in enforcing the rules to help ensure that worshippers are not disturbed by distracting noises, unconventional attitudes or sights or unpleasant smells.

“The rules and regulations will be applied without exception,” Al Jaber said.

Source: Gulf News