Irek Ziganshin, Chairman of the Halal Standard Committee of the Muslim Spiritual Directorate of Tatarstan, said some 25 million Muslims live in Russia, including many in Tatarstan, and they want to make sure that the vaccines comply with Halal standards.
He said Muslims in other countries also follow the same principle, as in Malaysia and Indonesia in which a number of COVID-19 vaccines received Halal certificates recently, RT Arabic reported.
Ziganshin noted that if a vaccine contains elements like gelatin coming from porcine materials, it will be Haram (not allowed for Muslims to use).
Halal is a term designating any object or an action which is permissible to use or engage in, according to Islamic law.
Coronavirus vaccines used in many Muslim countries should undergo approval process by the Halal organizations.
People in Russia are currently being inoculated against COVID-19 with the country’s Sputnik V vaccine.
Produced by Russian Health Ministry’s Gamaleya Center, Sputnik V has so far been approved for use in 14 countries.