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Journalism of Courage
A cat stole the show during the nightly Ramadan prayers being held in a mosque in Algeria’s Bordj Bou Arreridj. In a now-viral clip, the cat is seen climbing on the imam leading the prayers being broadcast live.
Instead of getting startled, Imam Walid Mehsas maintains his composure and lets the cat climb on his shoulder. The cat cuddles up to the imam once it settles on his shoulder and then jumps down, moments before he bows down during the prayer.
On Thursday, BBC tweeted this video and it soon gathered thousands of likes.
Commenting on it, a Twitter user wrote, “I’ve always believed animals were a great judge of character That Imam shows compassion for the cat to express such affection.” Another person said, “It’s his gentleness with the cat that really moves me. I don’t know. Whenever I see guys being gentle with cats it somehow makes me less apprehensive? Can’t explain it. Anywhooo. This is lush.”
In January 2020, a similar video from Wat Udomrangsi, a temple on the outskirts of Bangkok, had gone viral. The video showed a cat trying to get the attention of a Buddhist monk by climbing on his lap and nudging him as he tried to concentrate on his prayers.
