Eid al-Fitr is a special time of year for the nearly half of Africa’s population who are adherents of Islam. But this year’s celebration is different amid the continuing coronavirus pandemic and the devastation it has caused across the continent. The Ramadan fast is normally broken by the eating of sugary dates, per Muslim tradition. But this year is bittersweet, said South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, who joined a recent iftar in Cape Town. “As this sacred month draws to a close, I want to call on the Muslim community to join hands with us, join hands with us in the national recovery and reconstruction effort,” he said. That hope is echoed from Senegal to Kenya to Ethiopia and South Africa as millions mark the end of this holy month.
SOURCE: VOA