Under the chairmanship of the Grand Mufti of the Muslims in the Republic of Bulgaria Dr. Mustafa Hadzhi on April 3 (Friday), 2020 was held a meeting of the Fatwa Committee at the Supreme Muslim Council (SMC). The agenda of the working meeting, which was held through videoconference, included a discussion on two extremely topical issues in the situation of the present global coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic:

            1.     What is the procedure with a person who died of coronavirus?

      2.    What is the procedure with a person who died during epidemic, without being diagnosed with a coronavirus?

With regard to the above questions the Fatwa Committee issued the following theological opinions:

                                                          FATWA DECISION № 9

The person who died of coronavirus shall be buried as received from the hospital. If the body is in a plastic bag or coffin, it is not removed from the plastic bag or the coffin. Only tayammum (cleaning the dead body with either sand or dust) is done to him. Everything this does not mean that we have not fulfilled our duties to the deceased person, because we have responsibility to those who are alive to restrict the spreading of the infection and to protect their life and health.

The Exalted Allah says in the Holy Qur’an: “Allah does not charge a person with more than his capacity.” Furthermore, protecting the life, and also the health of those who are alive have a priority over bathing the deceased, which can be seen from the verse:

“And whoever saves one person - it is as if he had saved mankind entirely.”

And the Almighty Allah knows best!...

FATWA DECISION №10

During an epidemic, all imams, who wash deceased people, must be wearing the available appropriate personal protective equipment, such as gloves, masks, long boots, raincoats and others. After a single use they must be burned. The Fatwa Committee recommends to all Muslims to observe the instructions of the competent authorities, and also recommends to the Supreme Muslim Council and to Grand Mufti’s Office to adopt a Regulation for funerals in an extreme situation. It also appeals to all Muslims with the advice not to accept fatwas from sources other than the competent authority in Bulgaria, namely – the Fatwa Committee at the SMC. Disagreements and arbitrarily expression of opinions can cost human lives, for which responsibility will bear the people who have allowed themselves to give fatwas without having this competence.

And the Almighty Allah knows best!...