Palestine

Shaden Abdul Rahman

In the past years Palestinians spent Eid either mourning a son killed by the Israeli troops or showing solidarity with another family mourning a lost family member. This state of public mourning often leaves no room for Eid as every family grieves over a loved one. Palestinians live in poverty, the majority of them are unable to buy their kids new clothes, toys and gifts. From daily house demolitions to arrests and killing, one would think Palestinians are unable to celebrate Eid, in a way or another, this is true.

Nevertheless, Palestinians manage to have the Eid spirit, just as much as occupation allows them to. On Eid you still can see joy in the eyes of children. It is important to create a celebration for kids in Eid.

In Eid people visit each other and these visits always include coffee and special baked sweets filled with dates and nuts. Usually when someone dies people just offer Qahwah (coffee), if the person who died is considered as a martyr they will offer sweets.

First thing in the morning people, especially kids, put on their nicest clothes and attend Eid prayer followed by a sermon. After that prayer, hand-shakes, kisses and hugs peppers the joyful greetings (may you enjoy a good health this year and every year). Women who spent the night making baked sweets bring some with them to the mosque and share with the community. After the prayer everyone heads to the cemetery to visit the graves of departed relatives. Women hand out sweets while men recite Al Fatiha (the opening verse from Qura'an) on the souls of those who died during the conflict with Israel. Sweets giving at the cemetery is called “rahmeh“. Muslims also distribute alms and food to the poor.

After visiting the cemetery, men visit their female relatives, bringing gifts of money and lingering there to drink coffee or tea and eat more sweets before moving on to the next house. Towns and villages become alive with people going from one house to the next, sharing greetings as they pass one another in the streets and each house invites the passersby to come in and have something to eat or drink. Midday meal is a remarkable one during Eid Al Fitr, it usually consists of stuffed lamb (at least for those who still can afford it), or masnaf lamb (lamb meat cooked with yoghurt) or any other combination of meat and rice.

As for kids, the best part of Eid is receiving presents and small coins. They run to the shops to buy balloons, toy pistols, candy and sparklers. It is normal to see male kids wandering the streets with so much joy in their eyes holding their toy pistols; to them this is the only way they can face their fear and express the bitter feeling of injustice that torture them everyday. Their psychology is the product of living under occupation.
Scouts would start collecting charity after visiting the cemeteries and placing flowers on graves. Fireworks play all day and night especially in the first day of Eid and lots of simple small fun places with lots of games are installed in the empty areas everywhere.

This Eid is the second for those who live in Gaza strip. Gaza witnessed Israeli air raids that killed scores of Palestinians some of them children. Two Palestinians were killed just one day before Eid last year. Palestinian authorities said there would be no official celebration of Eid. Palestinians live in the light of the Israeli occupation.

Last year and every year under the occupation the majority of Muslims are prohibited from praying at Al-Aqsa Mosque by the Israeli soldiers. It's pretty much like what happens when Muslim Palestinians decide to pray the Friday prayer at Al-Aqsa Mosque. Often Israeli authorities would announce that access to Al-Aqsa mosque would be granted to Palestinians from the West Bank. What happens is that elderly male and female Palestinians endure so much pain trying to fulfil this religious duty in Jerusalem. After heated arguments with soldeirs at the check-points telling them to go back to their homes, they decide to pray at the check-point.

In Eid, people seize the chance for new beginings and fresh starts in relations.

May the next Eid we celebrate be in freedom and peace.