What is the ruling on praying inside the Haram if there are empty rows between the worshippers and those in front of them?

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The questioner : The honorable Shaykh says: The questioner asks, what is the ruling on praying inside the Haram if there are empty rows between the worshippers and those in front of them?

The Shaykh : Prayer in the entire mosque, the Sacred Mosque, is valid, even if the follower does not see the imam or the people behind him, but he is able to follow the imam through the loudspeaker.
However, the sunnah (recommended practice) is to complete the rows, the first then the next, because this is what the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) commanded and encouraged. He said:

Do you not line up as the angels line up before their Lord? They said: How is that, O Messenger of Allah? He said: They fill in the rows and complete the first then the next.

ألا تصفون كما تصف الملائكة عند ربها قالوا: وكيف ذلك يا رسول الله ؟ قال: يتراصون ويكملون الأول فالأول

So if a person stands to pray in a row and there is a distance between him and the front rows that contains no one, his prayer is valid, but that is contrary to the sunnah. The sunnah is to move forward so that the rows are continuous and completed, the first then the next.

Source alathar.net

The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.

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