Millions of people in more than a dozen Muslim countries are celebrating Eid al-Fitr at the end of the holy month of Ramadan after the new moon of the lunar calendar month of Shawwal was sighted on Sunday night.
Faraan: Muslim worshipers who had fasted for a month took part in Eid prayers in Turkey, Yemen, Syria, Palestine, most Persian Gulf Arab kingdoms, and countries in North Africa on the morning of the festive occasion.
Over the past two years, the outbreak of the coronavirus had forced many worshipers to perform the Eid prayers at home or observe strict health protocols in mosques. Hundreds of Muslims gathered in Saudi Arabia’s holy cities of Mecca and Medina to perform the Eid al-Fitr prayers in the early hours of Monday morning.
In Mecca’s Grand Mosque, Imam Sheikh Saleh bin Abdullah bin Humaid led the prayers. The Eid prayers at the Prophet’s Holy Mosque in Medina were attended by Prince Faisal bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Governor of Medina Region, and Prince Saud bin Khalid al-Faisal, Deputy Governor of Medina Region.
Moreover, Muslims welcomed Eid al-Fitr in Indonesia with a return to festivities to mark the end of the holy fasting month of Ramadan, after two years of muted celebrations due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Aside from lifting the ban on mass gatherings, the Indonesian government has eased the pandemic restrictions for this year’s festivities to allow people to hold congregational prayers and visit family, friends, and relatives in the world’s largest Muslim majority country the capital Jakarta, hundreds of thousands of Muslims crowded Istiqlal Grand Mosque, the largest mosque in the country, to attend Eid prayers.
