Advice to the youth on maintaining the congregational prayer during late-night gatherings

Question:
Abu 'Abdullah from al-Kharj says: Honorable Shaykh, in the present time, especially on holidays, many young people engage in prolonged late-night gatherings in rest houses and do not pray the Fajr prayer in congregation. We would like the Shaykh to give them some advice.

Answer:
These people should fear Allah and maintain the prayer in congregation. If they go to a rest house and there is a mosque nearby, it is obligatory for them to pray in the mosque in congregation and then return to their rest house. This applies if the rest house is free from idle talk, play, or games, or if it contains inappropriate secrets and deviant ideas, because some people exploit rest houses to spread these matters, such as spreading malicious ideas, partisanship, and the like. However, if it is free from such things and is merely a place for relaxation from work and for the companionship of those present, there is nothing wrong with it, provided they maintain the congregational prayer. If there is a mosque nearby and they can hear the adhan, it is obligatory for them to attend the mosque. If they are not near a mosque, they should establish the prayer in congregation at the rest house at its proper times.