Saudi Arabia has set up thermal cameras in one of the two of Islam's holiest sites, the Great Mosque of Mecca, to detect individuals infected with the coronavirus disease, Abdul Rahman al-Sudais, the head of the General Presidency for the Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques, said on Wednesday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 29th April, 2020) Saudi Arabia has set up thermal cameras in one of the two of Islam's holiest sites, the Great Mosque of Mecca, to detect individuals infected with the coronavirus disease, Abdul Rahman al-Sudais, the head of the General Presidency for the Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques, said on Wednesday.
"Today, [with god's will], we launched thermal camera devices that [scan] inside the holy sites from the doors. If a person is suspected of being sick, it [will be shown] on this device," al-Sudais said as quoted by the Al Arabiya broadcaster.
According to the news agency, these cameras, which are located at the entrances of the mosque's courtyards, can measure the temperature of up to 25 people at the same time.
Prior to this step, similar cameras were reportedly installed in the second Islamic shrine, the Prophet's Mosque in the city of Medina, as part of precautionary measures to limit the spread of COVID-19.
Al-Sudais, in turn, said that the two holy sites of islam would be soon reopened.
Earlier in April, Saudi Arabia's General Presidency for the Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques said that the two mosques in Medina and Mecca would stay closed during the fasting month of Ramadan, which has officially started in the country on Friday.
As of Wednesday, the Saudi Health Ministry has confirmed 20,077 coronavirus cases with 152 fatalities and 2,784 recoveries.