Photos: Eid al-Fitr, the Islamic festival marking the end of Ramadan

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Thousands of Ottawa-area Muslims gathered at the EY Centre on Wednesday to celebrate the first day of Eid al-Fitr, the Islamic festival marking the end of the month of Ramadan.

Throughout the month, Muslims are supposed to focus on strengthening their relationship with God through fasting, prayers, acts of charity and self-improvement.

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“The usually joyous occasion of Eid was overshadowed by somber reflections this year, as the devastating events unfolding in Gaza weighed heavily on the hearts of many,” the Muslim Association of Canada said in a news release.

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“Eid prayer and festival will be offered with heavy hearts and to maintain a semblance of normalcy and serve as a poignant reminder of the urgent need for compassion and solidarity in the face of human tragedy in Gaza. This year’s theme will be One Ummah in solidarity with Gaza.”

The Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7 has been followed by Israeli attacks on Gaza for the past six months. According to reporting by The Associated Press, more than 30,000 Palestinians have been killed in that time, including more than 13,000 children.

Sarah Abdul-Karim, an organizer with the Ottawa branch of the Palestinian Youth Movement, said the entire month of Ramadan had “felt very, very different” as Palestinians, Arabs and Muslims in Ottawa and around the world struggled to enjoy festivities while bearing witness to the ongoing siege of Gaza.

“This deep recognition that we are living through a genocide, so nothing is normal,” Abdul-Karim said in an interview Wednesday. “It’s been six months of a genocide, and a lot of us have reached very difficult breaking points, to be honest. There’s no way for a person to be prepared to witness this type of devastation.”

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Muslims in the local community, Abdul-Karim said, have “the luxury to celebrate and come together with family when our people are still stuck enduring this brutal, brutal genocide.”

She said many community members in Ottawa had lost family members in Gaza.

Weekly pro-Palestinian protests have become a fixture in Canada’s capital, with groups calling for a ceasefire, the end of Israel’s occupation of Gaza and for the Canadian government to enforce an embargo on military exports to Israel. The demonstrations have continued throughout Ramadan, when Muslims fast during daytime hours.

“In the midst of one Ramadan protest, one community member got the news she had lost her uncle and his entire family in Gaza,” Abdul-Karim said. “It was just an unreal moment of silence with the entire community, in the middle of the protest, to feel the impacts of the genocide directly.”

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau issued a statement Wednesday that said as the humanitarian crisis in Gaza continues to unfold, “Eid comes at a particularly challenging time. Canada reaffirms its call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and the safe, unimpeded access to humanitarian relief for civilians.”

With files from The Associated Press

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