What is the ruling on closing a mosque that accommodated more than 300 Arab worshippers, and restricting its prayers to a small number not exceeding 15 Egyptians only?
It is not permissible to designate prayer in mosques for some people to the exclusion of others, due to the Almighty's saying: "And that the mosques are for Allah, so do not invoke with Allah anyone," and His saying: "And who is more unjust than one who prevents the mosques of Allah from having His name mentioned therein and strives toward their destruction." However, some mosques within bodies and institutions are not endowed for prayer, and thus do not take on the rulings of mosques. If allowing the general public to pray in them would cause harm, it is permissible for officials to prevent that, and the assessment of harm rests with them. Therefore, they should cooperate with Muslims to perform prayers in their mosque, unless that would cause harm to the center or its people.
Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026
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