Doctor records video in three languages urging Muslims to accept Covid vaccine during Ramadan

Some people concerned receiving jab during holy month may inadvertently break fast

Dr Ijaz Anwar, a consultant with North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust and a practising Muslim, has released videos in three languages urging Muslims to accept their Covid jab during Ramadan (North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust)

A doctor has recorded videos in three different languages in a bid to encourage Muslims to accept the coronavirus vaccine during Ramadan.

Dr Ijaz Anwar, a consultant with North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust and a practising Muslim, hoped to reassure the local Muslim community that receiving a Covid-19 jab during the Islamic holy month would not contravene the requirement to fast.

Ramadan, which began on 12 April, will see observant Muslims not eat or drink during daylight hours until the end is celebrated with Eid al-Fitr, the “Feast of Fast-Breaking”, on 11 May.

There is concern some people may believe receiving a vaccine during Ramadan may inadvertently break the fast.

In his message, recorded in English, Urdu and Punjabi, Dr Anwar said: “I would urge everyone to get their Covid-19 jab, even if it’s during Ramadan. It will not affect your fast.

“You can even check this with your Imam at your local mosque.”

Muslim scholars across the world have also said vaccinations do not break the fast and urged people not to delay their jab.

Some vaccination sites will stay open later during Ramadan so Muslims can get vaccinated after breaking their fast in the evening.

But Dr Farzana Hussain, a Muslim and GP at The Project Surgery in east London, said there was no need for those adhering to a fast to avoid daylight hours.

She said: “The Koran says saving your life is the most important thing: to save one life is to save the whole of humanity. It's a responsibility of a practising Muslim to take their vaccine.”

The British Medical Journal has also issued the following advice: “People from some ethnic minority backgrounds, such as black, Bangladeshi and Pakistani, may be more hesitant to receive a Covid vaccination because they don’t want to compromise their fast.

“It is important for these groups to know that having vaccines intramuscularly during fasting time (dawn to dusk) does not nullify one’s fast and vaccination should not be delayed.”

Last year, mosques across the world were closed because of the pandemic and Muslims were encouraged to pray at home rather than congregate in crowded spaces.

The Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) published guidance for worshippers, which advised celebrating Ramadan “digitally” and sharing Iftar - the meal with which Muslims end their daily fasting - with family over FaceTime rather than in person.

The Mosque and Imams National Advisory Board (Minab) said the closure of mosques last year was “extremely painful” but obeying lockdown restrictions was a “moral obligation”.

Additional reporting by PA