Refugees and debt-ridden residents are legitimate recipients of zakat, said the Kingdom’s Grand Mufti Abdulaziz Al-Asheikh, who is also chairman of the Council of Senior Scholars.

He urged people who are no longer in need of charity money to make way for others who are more worthy of aid.

Zakat is also obligatory on land that has not been sold in a year, he said during a sermon at the Imam Turki bin Abdullah Mosque in Riyadh.

“Citizens who cannot afford to pay off their monthly bank installments are also eligible to receive zakat money, in addition to youth who cannot afford to get married.”

“Syrian refugees in Lebanon, Jordan, and other countries are in dire need of financial aid after their homes were demolished and their properties looted, not to mention the Palestinians in Gaza,” he said.