Celebrating with prayer, family gatherings and tasty pastries
Ramadan fasting ended yesterday – and Muslims around the world began to enjoy this year’s Eid Al Fitr celebrations.
The festivities last for three days, during which time families prepare traditional recipes and meet loved ones for early prayers and gatherings in parks.
Children and adults wear new clothes to observe Eid.
This year’s celebrations will be especially welcome after two years of subdued festivities caused by Covid-19.
Life is back to normal in many countries, as governments ease restrictions after vaccination campaigns to combat a new wave of infections caused by coronavirus variants.
In Saudi Arabia, Eid was marked with fireworks across the kingdom. Thousands of people gathered in Makkah and Madinah to perform Eid Al Fitr prayers in the early hours of yesterday.
Earlier, after isha – the final prayer on Sunday – people went out to buy sweets and Eid gifts.
Malls and other public places played traditional Eid music.
“The excitement and feeling is palpable wherever you go, from the streets to malls or along the Corniche,” said Lamar Alsayeed, who lives in the Red Sea port city of Jeddah.
“Everyone is out playing Eid songs. It is the most joyful festival for kids who are excited for their Eid gifts and for adults who get to dress up and meet their families and friends in a grand celebration.”
Across the Middle East, Eid is often welcomed with sweet, buttery pastries called kahk and mahmoul. These are stuffed with dried fruit, such as dates and figs, and nuts – including pistachios and walnuts. In South-East Asia, it is marked with steamed rice served with rich meat dishes and desserts.
In Beirut, hundreds of people performed Eid Al Fitr prayers at the Mohammad Al Amin Mosque, against the backdrop of an economic meltdown that has left many Lebanese unable to make ends meet.
Adding to their problems, this year’s Eid comes in the shadow of a surge in global food prices, following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. This has affected countries that rely on imports of wheat – Russia and Ukraine usually account for almost a quarter of total global exports – and other staples, such as sunflower oil and dairy produce.
Higher food prices have contributed to a broader increase in inflation.
Owing to budget pressures, most families in the Middle East are used to cooking at home, with favourites including Eid treats. Home cooks often share photos on their social media accounts of mouth-watering, freshly baked biscuits and sugar-dusted cookies.
Many people are determined not to let the high prices dampen the Eid spirit.
“Come and try the best kahk you can ever have. It’s more delicious than the pricey ones in bakeries and supermarkets,” said Somia, an Egyptian woman, who took to Instagram to describe her mother’s recipe.
Palestinian women in Gaza and the occupied West Bank also compete to display their traditional date and nut-filled cookies to mark Eid.
Yesterday, thousands of worshippers gathered at dawn to perform Eid Al Fitr prayers at Al Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem’s Old City, after weeks of tensions with Israeli security forces and Jewish settlers.
Security measures imposed by Israel did not stop the worshippers. Men over 50, and women and children under 12 are regularly allowed into the compound during Ramadan for Friday prayers. Others have to obtain permits from the Israeli authorities.
In Iraq, celebrations brought security concerns. In Baghdad, the authorities kept traffic from Al Mutanabbi Street – a symbol of Iraq’s cultural and intellectual life, renowned for its bookshops and architecture.
In Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim country, tens of thousands of worshippers attended prayers yesterday morning at the largest mosque in South-East Asia.
The Istiqlal Grand Mosque in the capital, Jakarta, was shut at the start of the pandemic in 2020 and was closed to communal prayers last year.
“Words can’t describe how happy I am today. After two years … today, we can do Eid prayer together again,” said Jakarta resident Epi Tanjung
In Afghanistan, people are marking the first Eid since the Taliban takeover last August.
The period before Eid was marked by bombings, most claimed by ISIS-linked terrorists. These hit ethnic Hazaras, mostly Shiites, leaving many debating whether to attend Eid prayers at all.
“We want to show our resistance, that they cannot push us away,” community leader Bakr Saeed said before Eid.