Saudi Gazette report

RIYADH — The Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Call and Guidance has directed all its branches not to perform Eid prayers in the outdoor chapels and to be limited only in the mosques to preserve the safety of worshipers due to weather fluctuations.

The ministry said that its directive comes in consideration of the weather fluctuations in some regions of Saudi Arabia such as heavy rains on the Eid Al-Fitr day.

The ministry confirmed that it is following up on weather fluctuations that have been confirmed by the reports of the General Authority of Meteorology and Environmental Protection.

The Ministry noted that areas that do not witness rainy conditions could continue to prepare the outdoor chapels.

It is worth mentioning that the National Center of Meteorology (NCM) has confirmed that there is a possibility of thunderstorms accompanied by hail, and active winds that limit the horizontal visibility over parts of the heights of Najran, Jazan, Asir, Al Baha and Makkah regions.

The NCM said that it is also expected that the southern parts of Riyadh and the eastern regions will witness partly cloudy skies, with rainy thunderclouds accompanied by active winds.

The NCM has also indicated the possibility that parts of the Northern Border areas, Al-Jouf and Tabuk will witness activity in dusty surface winds, which may lead to a near-lack of horizontal visibility.