Places of worship for non-Muslims will be permitted to open on June 10, but only in green zones that are free of Covid-19 cases, and limited to important days such as Sundays for Christians.

Defence Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob (above) announced in his daily briefing today that the services would have to be conducted under strict standard operating procedures (SOPs) and only Malaysian citizens are allowed to attend.

He said this was after consultation with National Unity Minister Halimah Mohamed Sadique who had met with representatives of various religions such as Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Taoism and Sikhism.

"These places of worship will not be allowed to open daily to the public but only on important days in the week with limited prayer hours and a limited number of devotees.

"If there are violations of the SOP then this relaxation of the rules will be retracted," said Ismail.

Among the SOPs are the number of worshippers should not exceed a maximum of 30 and it could be less depending on the size of the place of worship.

Senior citizens of 70 years old and above, and children of 12 years old and below are not permitted to attend.

Social distancing, the use of hand sanitiser and the wearing of face masks are also part of the SOP.

As many as 174 places of worship including 84 kuil (Hindu temples), 15 tokong (Buddhist and Taoist temples), 67 churches and eight Gurdwaras are being permitted to open, said Ismail.

He added that functions such as weddings in temples, churches and religious associations remained under suspension.

Presently, only Muslim places of worship are allowed to open in some states, but this is subject to strict procedures to mitigate the risk of spreading Covid-19.

Among others, the number of worshippers during Friday prayers may not exceed 30 people and the congregation would be selected by the mosque or surau committees.