ISLAMABAD: Islamabad authorities on Saturday closed to the general public the city's largest mosque as the capital is seeing a surge in coronavirus infections.
At 54,000 square feet, Faisal Mosque can accommodate 250,000 worshippers at one time. The mosque's triangular prayer hall alone can squeeze in 100,000 people. It is the largest mosque in South Asia and the fourth largest in the world.
Islamabad, a city of nearly 1.2 million, has imposed a series of new restrictions and partial lockdowns in the past few days to stop the spread of coronavirus. At least 747 new COVID-19 cases were reported in the capital in the past 24 hours — over a fifth of the country's new cases and the highest number since the beginning of the outbreak in February last year.
"Faisal Mosque is being closed down for the general public," Islamabad Additional Deputy Commissioner Rana Waqas Anwar said in a tweet, adding that prayers at the mosque would continue at a "limited scale."
Sitting at the base of Islamabad’s crown jewel, the Margalla Hills, Faisal Mosque was named after Saudi Arabia’s King Faisal bin Abdulaziz who gave a $120 million grant for its construction.
