Eid-al-Fitr
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Celebrations End Ramadan with a Feast
From Abu Dhabi to Zanzibar, Muslims ended their 29 or 30 days of fasting with a celebration called Eid al-Fitr. This feast day comes at the end of Ramadan and in many places will include a holiday for three days.
The Kuwait Times says Kuwaiti’s will take the opportunity to travel to surrounding countries to celebrate the three-day event since venues in Kuwait will be “ridiculously crowded”.
In Jakarta, businesses and shops are closed and the usually gridlocked streets are nearly empty as about half the capital’s 12 million people leave the city for their hometowns.
Idul Fitri marks the end of the month of Ramadan, when Muslims are required to abstain from food, drink and sex during daylight hours.
Eid means recurring happiness or festivity in Arabic and Al-Fitr literally means the breaking of fast. Muslims celebrate the day that marks the beginning of Shawwal or the tenth month in the Muslim calendar with much enthusiasm and fervor.
Prime Minister Shaikh Khalifa Bin Salman Al Khalifa in Bahrain made a phone call with Amir of Kuwait Shaikh Sabah Al Ahmed Al Jaber Al Sabah. Both sides exchanged greetings wishing each other unity and prosperity. In another call, Shaikh Khalifa exchanged Eid greetings with the Kuwaiti Crown Prince Shaikh Nawaf Al Ahmed Al Jaber Al Sabah and offered condolences to the demise of Shaikj Salim Sabah Al Salim Al Sabah.
Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki called on political and religious leaders to put the higher national interests of the country above anything else and cement the national unity. Two deadly attacks brought bloodshed to ordinary Iraqis, including children, as they prepared to celebrate.
New York’s Empire State Building is lit up in green this week to honor the Muslim holiday Eid-al-Fitr. In Saudi Arabia, the home to Islam’s holiest sites, Mecca and Medina, King Abdullah signalled “Muslim solidarity.” He ordered forgiveness of debts for the families of deceased men and women who had taken loans with the housing development fund and the Saudi loan bank.
There is a fair bit of disagreement on the day Eid is celebrated due to moonsighting difficulties and interpretation.
In North America, the Fiqh Council has produced a new formula for determining the start of Ramadan and the subsequent start of Eid al fitr. It is based upon calculating the moon scientifically, but then, figuring out when it can be viewed by the naked eye.
Many Christians have taken the opportunity to greet Muslims in friendship. Instead of focusing on differences, they have been telling their Muslim neighbors how they too as Christians fast and pray because they are “people of the book”. In some cases, this time of celebration among Muslims is used as an opportunity to witness to them. One young person said, “Muslims are so open right now and in a good mood, I can explain my faith to them without stirring tempers.”
Although Ramadan is over, the necessity for prayer and action towards Muslim’s continues.