Muslims around the world celebrated the Ramadan Bayram (Eid al-Fitr) holiday on Wednesday, marking the end of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan with family reunions, new clothes and sweet treats. But the celebrations are overshadowed by Israel's wholesale death and destruction, and growing humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip
A Palestinian man bikes past a destroyed mosque on the first day of the Eid al-Fitr festival marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan amid Israel's attacks, Deir el-Balah, central Gaza Strip, Palestine, April 10, 2024.
In Istanbul, thousands of worshippers gathered at the Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque for morning Eid prayers, some carrying Palestinian flags and chanting slogans in support of the people in Gaza.
Many laid their prayer rugs in the square in front of Hagia Sophia as space inside quickly filled, Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque, Istanbul, Türkiye, April 10, 2024.
People pray by the bodies of victims from a Palestinian family killed overnight by Israeli bombardment on the Nuseirat refugee camp, on the first day of the Eid al-Fitr festival marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan, during their funeral at, al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, Deir el-Balah, Gaza Palestine, April 10, 2024.
The war in Gaza was also the focus of prayers at the Rahma Mosque in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi. "We should not forget our brothers and sisters in Palestine," Imam Abdulrahman Musa said. "They have been subjected to unjustified aggression and a lot of violence as the world is watching in silence."
The Ramadan Eid prayer was performed at the Orhan Mosque, built in 1332 in Kocaeli, and where the tradition of sermons with a sword is kept alive in Türkiye, Içkale, Izmit, Türkiye.
In Indonesia, the world's most populous predominately Muslim nation, nearly three-quarters of the population were traveling for the annual homecoming known locally as "mudik" that is always welcomed with excitement.
"Mudik is not just an annual ritual or tradition for us," said civil servant Ridho Alfian, who lives in the Jakarta area and was traveling to Lampung province at the southern tip of Sumatra island. "This is a right moment to reconnect, like recharging energy that has been drained almost a year away from home," Iskender Bey Square, Tiran, Albania, April 10, 2024.
Before the Eid al-Fitr holiday, markets teemed with shoppers buying clothes, shoes, cookies and sweets. People poured out of major cities to return to villages to celebrate the holiday with their loved ones. Flights were overbooked and anxious relatives weighed down with boxes of gifts formed long lines at bus and train stations for the journey.
For Arini Dewi, Eid al-Fitr is a day of victory from economic difficulties during Ramadan. "I'm happy in celebrating Eid holiday despite the surge of food prices," said the mother of two, children at a mosque in Lebanon.
Former Indonesian Vice President Jusuf Kalla was among Jakarta residents offering prayers at the Al Azhar mosque yard. "Let's celebrate Eid al-Fitr as a day of victory from many difficulties... of course there are many social problems during fasting month of Ramadan, but we can overcome it with faith and piety," Kalla said.
On the eve of Eid al-Fitr, Jakarta residents set off firecrackers on streets that were mostly empty after city residents traveled home, Omar Kampong Melak Masjid, Singapore.
On Wednesday morning, Muslims joined communal prayers shoulder-to-shoulder on the streets and inside mosques. Jakarta's Istiqlal Grand Mosque, the largest in Southeast Asia, was flooded with devotees offering morning prayers.
Preachers in their sermons called on people to pray for Muslims in Gaza who were suffering after six months of Israel's attacks that have killed over 32,000 people, mostly women and children, and destroyed most of Gaza, Jakarta, Indonesia.
