German Ikea Provides Carpark to Replace Mosque for Eid Prayers During Covid-19

By Ameera Rosli  •  27 May 2020 in News

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In Frankfurt, Germany, a beautiful display of respect for each other’s cultures and religions as well as respect for the Covid-19 social distancing order has been seen at an Ikea parking lot.

Muslims around the world are currently celebrating Eid and with that, comes the Eid prayer. Usually done at mosques, the Eid prayer was almost cancelled this year since most mosques in Germany aren’t equipped to fit 800 muslims while still implementing social distancing. Due to that, an Ikea in Wetzlar lent their parking lot to the mosque and allowed all the muslims to pray safely.

“The closing prayer with all Muslims in Wetzlar was like a reward for us,” a mosque chairman, Kadir Terzi, told BBC News. The unity that took place was definitely something to be celebrated and since photos of the prayer went viral, the whole world has praised Germany’s efforts in promoting unity.

It all started when Terzi approached the store manager at their nearest Ikea and asked if the deed could be performed there. According to Terzi, “The store manager didn’t hesitate for a second and said ‘yes, you can pray’. I was surprised and happy at the same time.” And just like that, it was done.

All who attended were required to bring their face masks and prayer mats and were strictly reminder that children under 12 must remain at home. Terzi continued by saying Ramadhan this year was extremely difficult with the Covid-19 lockdown in place. He said, “It was a completely different Ramadan month, without contacts, without visits and without breaking the fast together.”

Eid Mubarak all✨

Especially to this Ikea branch in Germany.

Local Muslims asked if they can use the car park for prayers in order to maintain distancing per regulations. And Ikea said yes pic.twitter.com/6EDLmjkY9I

— Abdirahim Saeed (@AbdirahimS) May 24, 2020

This grand yet humble display of love and kindness is exactly what the world needs right now. It’s true that some disasters bring out the worst in people but it also tends to bring out the best.

Stay safe everyone!

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