Mosques, Churches in Egypt Emerge From Coronavirus Closure

At the Al-Azhar Mosque, worshipers attend Friday prayers for the first time in more than five months, after getting their temperature checked, Aug. 28, 2020 in Cairo. (Hamada Elrasam/VOA)

A man distributes prayer rugs and masks outside Al-Azhar Mosque in Cairo, Aug. 28, 2020. (Hamada Elrasam/VOA)

Bathrooms and washing rooms are closed at the mosque because of the pandemic, so worshippers improvise their traditional pre-prayer cleaning, Aug. 28, 2020 in Cairo. (Hamada Elrasam/VOA)

Masks and some measure of social distancing are required inside the mosque, Aug. 28, 2020 in Cairo. (Hamada Elrasam/VOA)

Abdelmenem Khatri, 58, says, "It’s a beautiful feeling to re-open the mosques," Aug. 28, 2020 in Cairo. (Hamada Elrasam/VOA)

Major Cairo churches also opened for Sunday mass for the first time in more than five months, Aug. 30, 2020. (Hamada Elrasam/VOA)

Priests implored people to wear masks, but many people did not at this service, Aug. 30, 2020 in Cairo. (Hamada Elrasam/VOA

Egyptian Coptic Christian worshipers line up to participate in the holy sacrament, Aug. 30, 2020 in Cairo. (Hamada Elrasam/VOA)

"We are worried that the virus will start spreading faster but we don’t ever want to stop praying or going to church,” said Mosa Nazmy after the church service attending a mass with his wife and children, Aug. 30, 2020 in Cairo. (Hamada Elrasam/VOA)

Many Egyptians, like Mohamed Osam, fear re-opening services and businesses will encourage people to forget about social distancing and other preventative measures against the pandemic, Aug. 29, 2020. (Hamada Elrasam/VOA)