America’s 4.5 million Muslims ended Ramadan on Wednesday with a different perspective than previous years because of the Israel-Hamas war, two faith leaders said.
Basharat Saleem, executive director of the Islamic Society of North America, said Muslims will celebrate Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of Ramadan’s month of dawn-to-dusk fasting, with Gaza prominent in their thoughts and prayers.
“We are looking forward to a climate of peace and prosperity for our nation, for our people, for our other brothers and sisters, in our own communities, and for the whole world. That is our prayer,” Mr. Saleem said.
And Harris Zafar, national spokesman for the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community USA, said food shortages in Gaza remain top-of-mind even as Ramadan ends.
“You heard a lot more sentiments coming from parts of the Muslim community this year about the Palestinian Muslims and people talking about even as they experienced hunger through their fast this year, how it made them think about those Palestinians in Gaza, who are experiencing hunger and thirst even before Ramadan because they’re short on supplies,” Mr. Zafar said in a telephone interview.
April 7 marked six months of warfare between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas, which launched a terrorist raid into southern Israel in which more than 1,200 people were killed and more than 250 others were taken hostage.
Since the Oct. 7 raid, Israeli forces leveled much of Gaza in a retaliatory campaign that has killed more than 32,000 Palestinians, displaced hundreds of thousands and raised the specter of famine among the survivors, according to Palestinian health officials.
The idea of famine in Gaza amid the feasting of Eid al-Fitr creates cognitive dissonance for U.S. Muslims as well as opportunities for prayer and reflection, Mr. Saleem said.
“What’s happening in Gaza is an extremely sad situation and people are undergoing that feeling at the same time,” he said. “Obviously, our Muslim community is dealing with that and we pray for peace in the region, a more stable peace in the long run. That’s what our community really is looking forward to.”
What’s more, the celebration of Eid al-Fitr will remind Ahmadi Muslims of the need to be “more conscientious about other people and taking care of them,” Mr. Zafar said.
The U.S. Ahmadiyaa community has 60 chapters and about 30,000 members, Mr. Zafar said. Though not the largest Muslim organization in America, the Ahmadis make it a point to engage with the community at large and their own members, he said.
The global Ahmadiyya community claims to have tens of millions of adherents and is active in 213 countries.
“We’re not an internal-facing, self-isolated community,” Mr. Zafar said. “We are arguably one of, if not the, most organized, as well as externally facing [communities], engaging with those around us.”
• Mark A. Kellner can be reached at mkellner@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.