Israel’s war in Gaza weighs on the holy month of Ramadan

Amna Nawaz:

Muslims around the world right now are marking the month of Ramadan.

Observing Muslims abstain from food and water from sunup to sundown every day and gather to break their fasts during the iftar meal. But, this year, the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza with mass civilian deaths and massive suffering among Gazans has added a new layer to this holy month.

We spoke with Muslims at a local mosque in suburban Maryland.

Hakeemah Cummings, Maryland:

My name is Hakeemah Cummings.

Nasif Sikder, Maryland:

Nasif Sikder.

Arwa Rahman, Maryland:

My name is Arwa Rahman.

Muhammad Mehmood, Maryland:

Muhammad Zia.

Kevser Ozer, Maryland:

My name is Kevser Ozer.

Nasif Sikder:

Yes, Ramadan, every year, this is something that we look forward to. We count down the days.

And it's — the whole tone, the whole vibe changes during Ramadan.

Hakeemah Cummings:

So, I have three young girls, 8, 7 and 1 year. So we put lights around the house.We decorate. We have a welcome Ramadan party. We try to come together with families and just make it so that this month is special for them.

Kevser Ozer:

We come and pray here after our five daily prayers. At night, we have special prayers and we do it together. It's a blessing.

Muhammad Mehmood:

So, iftars are amazing. And it's partly because everyone's hungry and all the food is right there. So you're really looking forward to this moment in the day.

And you're doing it with people you love, with your friends and family.

Arwa Rahman:

We obviously fast from sunrise to sunset. And also we use this month to try to, like, eat a lot, but also give food a lot and give as much charity as we can, so we can feel closer to also those who don't have what we have.

Muhammad Mehmood:

This Ramadan, Muslims all over the world are definitely thinking of our brothers and sisters in Gaza and in Palestine in general and the conditions they're in. And we're praying for them.

Hakeemah Cummings:

It's supposed to be a high time of, like, mood and joy and all of that. And you come in feeling helpless and almost maybe even angry or all of these negative emotions.

Arwa Rahman:

This might be the most difficult Ramadan yet because of — they don't have enough food and sometimes even water. And we're always seeing how many kids are suffering, where they're literally starving, and their parents also going to the north to find food for them, and then coming back to their children under the rubbles.

We feel more like we don't want to waste food at all. Like, even if we don't like a food, we still want to eat it because we always think about what's happening in Gaza, where they're eating lemon and grass soup and dirt pies.

Muhammad Mehmood:

With what's going on in Gaza during this Ramadan, I think it comes with increased awareness of the privilege that we enjoy of having family around us, of having food and water, and knowing that there's so many on the different part of the world that are being deprived of these things.

Kevser Ozer:

We are giving more this Ramadan. Especially if there's, like, a special fund-raising for Gazan people or demonstration, we have to be there. Like, we are trying our best to be with them and thinking about them.

Hakeemah Cummings:

There was also other people who were kind of echoing that, saying that the people of Gaza are — they're suffering in an unprecedented way. And so we should kind of dumb down our Ramadan, because the joy and the celebration is not a time for that.

The way I think about it is that it's a time to do it even more. I have signs outside of my house. And, like, it's something that I want to celebrate in the face of all of this to show that there's nothing that could ever take away Ramadan from us. We increase and we do it more on purpose because this is our month to celebrate regardless.