Friday namaz at J&K’s Jamia Masjid barred, Mirwaiz confined to home

The J&K administration has barred Friday namaz at Srinagar’s historic Jamia Masjid and confined Hurriyat leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq to his residence. This comes amid speculation that the authorities were trying to pre-empt a post-prayer protest against Israel’s crackdown on Hamas in Palestine. The mosque committee expressed surprise and regret at the administration’s action, stating that security officials forced shut all doors to the shrine without explanation.