END OF RAMADAN | A boy looks confused while adults pray, celebrating the start of Eid’l Fitr in Davao City in 2011 The feast, which begins after the sighting of a new crescent moon, marks the end of the fasting month of Ramadan, during which devout Muslims abstain from food, drink, smoking and sex from dawn to dusk. (File photo by KARLOS MANLUPIG / Inquirer Mindanao)
ILIGAN CITY, Lanao del Norte, Philippines — The Bangsamoro Darul Ifta announced Sunday night that Eid’l Fit’r, which marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan, will start on Monday, May 2.
The displaced residents of Marawi City in Lanao del Sur greeted the announcement with a renewed sense of hope that they would finally return home and be reunited with friends and families.
Grand Mufti Sheikh Abu Huraira Udasan of the Bangsamoro Darul Ifta announced the sighting of the moon on the evening of Sunday, May 1, signifying that Eid Ul Fitr, or the feast of the breaking of the fast, would be on Monday, May 2.
“Eid’l Fitr has always been a time for togetherness, but this year is bound to be different for the people of Marawi City,” said Zia Alonto-Adiong, a member of the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) Parliament. “Not only will they be together with friends and family they will also be together in looking forward to finally coming home.”
He said Marawi residents welcomed the Eid this year with President Rodrigo Duterte finally signing the Marawi compensation bill into law, marking the fulfillment of a promise.
“Our people can now, once again, make plans for the future with the assurance of return to a city we have long merely carried in our hearts,” Adiong said in a statement.
He also said that this year’s celebration would be more significant as people would again have the chance to pray in Jameo Mindanao Al-Islamie, known locally as the Islamic Center, for the first time in five years.
“It is a beloved place of worship that (the late) Senator Ahmad Domacao A. Alonto, Sr. helped build for the people of Marawi, one that has become a defining landmark of our city,” he added.
He said the celebration of Eid’l Fit’r at the end of the holy month of Ramadan would be a reminder to the people that in suffering, there would always be relief.
“Our faith in Allah has always provided comfort and consolation, and it is the same faith that gives us hope and healing,” he said.
“As we end our fast, may we continue to look at each other with kindness, treat each other with generosity, and bless each other with the fullness of our faith,” he added, greeting everyone with, “Eid Mubarak! Kullu Am Wa Antum Bil Khayr [May you be well throughout the year].”
The Bangsamoro government wished the Muslim community around the world a blessed celebration as it posted the official announcement on its website.
Eid’l Fit’r marks the end of the fasting month of Ramadan and the beginning of Shawwal, the 10th month in the Islamic lunar calendar.
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