Ramadan begins in Iran amid virus

Iranians started the month of Ramadan on Saturday as the coronavirus outbreak looms over the holy month of fasting and praying.

This year's Ramadan is significantly different from previous years due to lockdowns and physical distancing practices that are in place to slow down the spread of the pandemic.

Officials in Iran, the country that is hit worst in the Middle East by the novel virus, have eased the lockdown a little in hopes of saving the economy that was already strained harshly under sanctions.

However, all religious gatherings, congregational prayers and communal Iftar servings, a meal eaten at sunset to break the fast, remain forbidden throughout Ramadan.

Holy shrines and religious centers also continue to be closed until at least May 4.

Meanwhile, a salesperson who had a brisk business of selling Ramadan essentials in this month complained that his sales have dropped by 80 percent as shoppers don't dare going inside to try his dates and nuts out of fear of infection.

Some top clerics have issued fatwas that give their followers the permission not to fast if they are afraid of getting infected by the virus as a result of abstention from drinking water and eating nutritious food from sunrise to sunset.

But Morteza Hajipour, a seller of prayer beads and Islamic rings decorated with sacred stones, said the pandemic should not keep Muslims from observing the holy month practices.

More than 5,600 people who suffered from the COVID-19 disease have died until April 25 since the beginning of the outbreak and the total number of those infected has reached over 89,000, according to statistics given by the Iranian Health Ministry.

For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough.

But for others, especially older adults and people with health problems, it can cause severe symptoms like pneumonia and lead to death.

(Representative Image)