Two U-bahn subway trains drive past the Mevlana Mosque in Berlin鈥檚 Kreuzberg district on April 14, 2021, a day after the start the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan. (Photo by David GANNON / AFP)
BERLIN 鈥� With his head tilted back and his face mask pulled down, Imam Abdallah Hajjir patiently undergoes a nasal swab outside a Berlin mosque to get tested for the coronavirus.
鈥淣egative!鈥� he smiles a few minutes later, and heads inside for Friday prayers.
The medical team manning a testing station outside the red-bricked 鈥淗ouse of Wisdom鈥� mosque is part of a push by authorities in the German capital to raise Covid awareness among Muslims during the holy fasting month of Ramadan, and among migrant populations more generally.
Sitting at a table in the building鈥檚 parking lot, the staff made up of Libyans, Syrians and Armenians carry out free rapid testing for a steady stream of worshippers lining up with prayer mats rolled up under their arms.
鈥楶rotecting society鈥�
Imam Abdallah Hajjir, wearing a gold-rimmed cap, says encouraging the congregation to get tested is a way 鈥渢o contribute鈥� in the fight against the pandemic.
鈥淏y protecting the members of our community, we are protecting those they come into contact with, so society as a whole,鈥� he told AFP.
Around 35 percent of Berlin residents have a migrant background, and neighborhoods with the highest proportion of migrants have recorded the highest number of coronavirus cases since the pandemic began a year ago.
They are often also the areas where population density is above average.
Many immigrants live in close quarters in small apartments, or in asylum centers where up to five people sometimes share a single room.
Last October, the OECD sounded the alarm and said migrant workers were 鈥渙n the frontline鈥� of the pandemic in developed countries.
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, a club of some 40 mostly rich nations, estimated that the risk of a coronavirus infection was 鈥渁t least twice as high鈥� as among the rest of the population.
In Germany as elsewhere, people with foreign backgrounds also tend to be employed in work that can鈥檛 be done remotely, such as cleaning or caring for the elderly, according to the Dezim institute for research on integration and migration.
As Germany鈥檚 Covid vaccination drive picks up speed, city authorities are stepping up efforts to try to overcome 鈥渢he large reservations鈥� held by some migrants about getting jabbed, said Katarina Niewiedzial, Berlin鈥檚 integration officer.
鈥淭here鈥檚 false information circulating鈥� about the vaccines, she said, ranging from 鈥溾�業t鈥檚 going to make me sterile鈥� to 鈥榯hey鈥檙e going to implant a chip'鈥�.
She said people like the imam 鈥渨ith all the authority they carry鈥� are best placed to 鈥渂oost people鈥檚 confidence鈥� in the Covid jabs.
鈥淭he impact is completely different when he uses his sermon, like he did today, to stress the need to protect lives,鈥� she added.
Berlin has also launched coronavirus information podcasts in over a dozen languages, including Arabic, Farsi and Kurdish.
The vaccination of 18,500 refugees living in shared accommodation in Berlin has also got under way.
Sidewalk prayers
Outside the mosque in Berlin鈥檚 diverse Moabit neighborhood, a small group of worshippers have placed their prayer rugs on the asphalt and are listening to the imam鈥檚 voice carried by loudspeakers from the prayer room.
Pandemic restrictions on the number of people allowed to gather inside the building have left them praying on the sidewalk.
The cleansing ritual, or ablution, has to be carried out before arriving at the mosque.
But Ali, 30, who comes every Friday, says he won鈥檛 let the virus curbs ruin the holy month of Ramadan for the second year in a row.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a shame we can鈥檛 have large family gatherings (to break the fast). But luckily we can have video chats with our relatives,鈥� he says, smiling.