IS 'bans extra evening prayers during Ramadan'

Iraqi imam claims Islamic State group has banned tarawih prayers during the holy month because it considers them a "religious invitation".

Narrated

1 min read

Alex Wright

18 Jun, 2015

IS troops in photo released by their own media outlets

An imam in the Iraqi ministry of religious affairs has said the Islamic State group has banned extra evening prayers during Ramadan in Mosul because it considers them heresy.

Shiekh Saadoun al-Nuaimi told the Kurdish news agency, BasNews: "IS religious police have banned tarawih prayers because they are a 'religious innovation' created by Saudi clerics that under no circumstances will be allowed.

"IS has threatened all imams and mosques in Mosul that they will be flogged if they hold tarawih prayers."

The evening prayers are observed throughout the month and include 10 days of "seclusion" at the end of the month, when some people sleep in the mosque overnight.

The extra prayers are observed by Sunni Muslims. The majority of Islamic scholars agree that they are not compulsory. Shia Muslims do not observe the prayers.