Western Balkan Muslims celebrate Eid al-Fitr

As the new coronavirus pandemic continues, Muslims in the western Balkan countries have been finding new ways to pray for Eid celebrations at the end of Ramadan.

Faithful in Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Kosovo, countries with a predominantly Muslim populations, have been either praying at home or outside closed mosques.

Imams have been in digital contact throughout the fasting month of Ramadan, and are expected to conclude it with Eid in the same way .

In Pristina, Mufti Naim Ternava of the Islamic Community of Kosovo led prayers at a mosque in front of a group of imams sitting 1.5 meters from each other, with attendees listening through loudspeakers.

"Brothers and sister, on this Bayram day I invite you to be patient a little bit more until we overcome the danger from the COVID-19," said Ternava, calling the faithful to avoid visiting each other.

The event comes after a group of Muslims prayed at the Skanderbeg Square in Pristina to protest the Community's decision against opening the mosques.

Kosovar health authorities repeated advice for people to not gather in mosques or visit relatives during the pandemic.

"Let's consider our sacrifice and care to preserve the health of everyone as a sublime value" health authorities said in a statement.

In Sarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina, mosques opened on 6 May after seven weeks of closure.

Restrictions are still in place, with facemasks and social distancing measures in force during prayers, and older people advised to stay at home.

For Eid prayers, everyone was asked to perform the first daily prayer that precedes it at home.

In addition, the Islamic Community agreed not to carry out its traditional Eid reception, usually attended by government officials, foreign diplomats and representatives of other religious communities in the country.

"Thank Allah when we went through all this, adhered to, followed the instructions of the state, persevered in all this and hopefully it will get better." Vail Imamovic said

In Tirana, Albania, where the capital's main Skanderbeg Square is usually packed with faithful during Eid, people gathered inside the mosques instead, as they opened their doors after two months of closure.

"The moment the mosques were closed seemed as if a big entrance was shut, God's door. But later we understood that if a mosque was closed at a quarter, then hundreds of mosques opened because the home of each one of us turned into a mosque," said Imam Gazmend Teqja of the Xhura Mosque in the Albanian capital.

At a mosque not far from the centre, people gathered in the street in defiance of social distancing orders. No police were seen stopping the gathering.

As of Sunday there have been 29 confirmed deaths and 1,032 confirmed cases in Kosovo, 141 confirmed deaths and 2,391 confirmed cases in Bosnia-Herzegovina, and 32 confirmed deaths and 989 confirmed cases in Albania.

(Representative Image)