Is the meaning of the Imam's saying, "Straighten your rows and stand in alignment," that the rows should be straight and aligned, or does it include closing the gaps and placing foot by foot and shoulder by shoulder?

The questioner : In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Your Eminence, may Allah preserve you, does the Imam's saying, mean that the row should be straight and aligned, or does it include closing the gaps and placing foot by foot and shoulder by shoulder? And what is the authenticity of the hadith reported from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he said:

The Shaykh : your rows

The questioner :

The Shaykh : Allah

The questioner :

The Shaykh : your faces

The questioner : your faces

The Shaykh : Yes

The questioner : This issue has become one of either negligence or excess. We ask for clarification, and may Allah preserve you?

The Shaykh : Yes.
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
First: We must know that the Imam has a responsibility, which is to straighten the rows. He must straighten the rows by ordering the people to do so. If they do not comply, he himself should step forward to the one who is behind the row or ahead of it to correct him. This is because our Prophet, our Imam, and our role model, Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him and his family), used to straighten the rows as if he were straightening arrows. He would pass through the row, rubbing the shoulders and chests, and ordering them to straighten. I do not know if people do this today or not? The answer is: No. In fact, if people saw an Imam doing this, they would complain about him. But the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) is more deserving of being followed. The important thing is that the Imam must pay attention to straightening the rows. He should look to the right and face the people with his face, and look to the left and say: "Straighten up, straighten your rows, do not differ lest your hearts differ, stand close together, close the gaps." All these words were reported from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family).
One day, after the people had understood from him the straightening of the rows and began to straighten them themselves, he saw a man whose chest was protruding, meaning he was slightly ahead. He said: This is a warning. Regarding Allah causing discord between faces, two meanings have been mentioned:
The first meaning: Either Allah turns a person's face so that his face is toward his shoulder, may Allah protect us from that.
Or the meaning is that Allah will cause discord between your viewpoints, so that hearts will separate and differ, as He said: In any case, whether it is the neck being turned until the face is to the side of the body, or the meaning is the difference of hearts, it is all a severe warning. This indicates that it is obligatory for the Imam to pay attention to straightening the row. But if he looks and finds the row straight, close together, and equal in position, should he say "Straighten up" or not? It appears to me that he should not say it. For example, if there are only two men behind him and he looks and finds them equal, close together, and in the desired position, there is no need for him to say "Straighten up," because this word has its meaning; it is not a word that is just said, it is not a passing word, it has its meaning. If the Imam says "Straighten up" and sees that they have not straightened, he must repeat the command and not say the takbir until the rows are straight.
Did you not know that the Commander of the Faithful, 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with him), and likewise 'Uthman, when the people increased, appointed a deputy to pass through the rows and straighten them, until when he came and said, "They are straight," he would say the takbir.
And all of this indicates the care of the Shari'ah for straightening the row. Yes, that is correct.
The questioner : And placing foot by foot, O Shaykh?

The Shaykh : Yes, placing foot by foot and shoulder by shoulder for two reasons:
The first reason: Straightening.
And the second reason: Closing the gaps and breaches, because if you open a gap between you and your companion, the devils will come and enter through this gap and confuse the people's prayer...