By Ben Garcia

KUWAIT: The Friday Market was still closed yesterday, and it will remain closed today and tomorrow. The Friday Market announced its reopening only last week; on Wednesday July 8, and some shops were able to receive customers the whole day on Thursday.

On Friday however, Kuwait Municipality decided to close the area once again due to overcrowding. On March 13, the Municipality closed the market as a precautionary measure to stop the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). The reopening of the market last Thursday prompted a large gathering of people which, alarmed Municipality officials again.

Friday Market is very popular among people looking for used items and cheap goods. Last week, official at the market said that they will strictly observe the health ministry's directives on health protocols, but it seemed that they weren't firmly followed, which prompted the market's re-closure.

"We will strictly observe the health ministry's directives on health protocols, and we urge our customers to always wear masks and gloves," an official told Kuwait Times the day before last week's scheduled reopening. Asked when they plan to reopen again, a security guard told Kuwait Times that management has no specific date mentioned as to when they will reopen again.