I found in the book al-Rawd al-Murba' by Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal that there are seven places where prayer is not permissible, and among these places is the cemetery, and in our country...

The questioner : I found in al-Rawd al-Murba' by Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal that there are seven places where prayer is not permissible, and among these places is the cemetery. In our country, they pray over the deceased in the cemetery before burial. What is the ruling on that?

The Shaykh : Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and I send prayers and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his Companions. As for what follows:
The questioner says: I found in al-Rawd al-Murba' by Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal. The book mentioned is not by Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal, but by one of those who claim affiliation to Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal. It is by Ibn Abi Yunus al-Bahuti, who explained Zad al-Mustaqn' by Shaykh Musa ibn Salim al-Hajjawi. Both the book mentioned and its original source are, according to the well-known view, in accordance with the madhhab of Ahmad among his later followers.
Among the places mentioned where prayer is not valid is the cemetery, which is the burial place of the dead. A hadith was reported regarding this from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), narrated by al-Tirmidhi, that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: . And Muslim narrated from Abu Mirdad al-Ghunawi that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: . Based on this, prayer in the cemetery is not permissible, and praying toward a grave is not permissible, because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) clarified that the cemetery is not a place for prayer and prohibited praying toward a grave.
The wisdom behind this is that prayer in the cemetery or toward a grave is a means to shirk (associating partners with Allah). And whatever is a means to shirk is forbidden, because the Lawgiver has blocked every path that leads to shirk. And Satan flows through the son of Adam like blood; he begins with him first in the means and pathways, then leads him to the ultimate goals.
So if any person prays an obligatory prayer or a voluntary prayer in a cemetery or toward a grave, his prayer is not valid.
As for praying over the funeral, there is no harm in it. It is established from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he prayed over a grave in the story of the woman or the man who used to clean the mosque and died at night. The Companions did not inform the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) of his death. When morning came, he (peace and blessings be upon him) said: . So they directed him to it, and he (may Allah's prayers and peace be upon him) prayed over him. Thus, praying over a grave is an exception to the prohibition of prayer, and likewise praying over the deceased before burial, because this is a specific prayer related to the deceased. Just as it is permissible to pray over the grave of the deceased, it is permissible to pray over him before burial.