Vigilant against coronavirus, Asia's Muslims keep faith and distance as Ramadan begins

Muslims wait for Friday prayer to start at a mosque on the first day of holy fasting month of Ramadan, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Bangkok, Thailand April 24, 2020. REUTERS/Jorge Silva

JAKARTA (Reuters) - Governments of Asian nations with large Muslim populations urged people to keep their distance while observing their faith as Islam's fasting month of Ramadan began on Friday, shrouded in fear over the coronavirus.

Early outbreaks in Asia, home to the bulk of the world's 1.8 billion Muslims, were traced in many cases to pilgrims returning from Iran and Saudi Arabia, as in Afghanistan and Pakistan, or gatherings of Islamic groups, as in India and Malaysia.