Ramadan Reflections: An Extremely Difficult Ramadan for Muslims all Over the World

By Opinion Editor Baneen Talpur

Ramadan is upon us once again, with Muslims all around the world fasting from sunrise to sunset. 

This means that they abstain from eating, drinking, sex and other forms of pleasure in an attempt to get closer to God. It is not just about starving yourself, muslims strive to do better. They try to avoid sin such as gossiping and do more acts of worship such as praying and donating to charity. Since Ramadan runs on the lunar calendar, it changes every year by going back 10 days of the previous year’s start date. This year fasts are significantly shorter than last, with almost equal amounts of time between sunrise and sunset.

Muslims look forward to this time of year, getting up early to fast while the rest of the world is still asleep has its own unique feeling and it is a time where the community meets, people eat together, prepare food for each other and it is a time where you feel cared for. People are looking after you, making sure you are well fed and well rested. You get the chance to press pause on the hustle and bustle of everyday life. You get the chance to be away from the world of consumerism, even if it is just for a short while. You understand the value of what you have, however small and the importance of the things that we normally take for granted.

This year though, Ramadan is different, it is much more sombre. Muslims are in an extremely difficult position all over the world this year. There is already a man made famine by Israel and the West in Palestine. Everyday our feeds are filled with children who have died of starvation from the genocide. Ramadan was always difficult for Palestinians, with the Israeli armed forces regularly storming Al Aqsa mosque during the Holy Month in order to intimidate worshippers long before October 7.

As I look at the iftar and suhoor that I get to eat and look forward to eating everyday, I am riddled with guilt, feeling helpless that I am not able to help the Palestinians in any major meaningful way or to make their Ramadan any easier. They have nothing to open and prepare their fasts with. They are simply starving all the time.

Photo from Agnes France-Presse, Getty Images.

Sudan is also facing a civil war and currently becoming  the world’s biggest hunger crisis. These people have no homes, no food or water. Millions of Muslims have been displaced from their homes this year in both situations. In Sudan, the war has been going on for over a year, since April 2023 mainly between the Sudanese Armed forces and the Parliamentary Rapid Forces.

Not enough Muslim countries are helping either situation much either. Sending aid to Gaza has been very difficult with the Israeli army blocking the majority of it. Muslim countries are not really involved in the political side of things either, especially when they could be doing much more especially with the power Arab countries have in terms of oil. In 1973, the Arab countries held an Oil Embargo in retaliation against the US for supplying weapons to Israel during the Yom Kippur war. This lead oil prices everywhere to skyrocket, triggering a worldwide energy crisis. The Israeli genocide of the Palestinian people is getting out of hand with millions at the risk of death, people seeing this in real time online and yet the the political world stays silent. Arab governments and countries could be doing so much more but they are not, whether out of fear of the US and Israel or due to their own cowardice, we won’t really know.

…with almost no mosques left to pray in and with most squashed in Rafah, the Southernmost part of the Gaza Strip, the Palestinian people do not lose hope.

Regardless of how bad the situation is in Palestine, with almost no mosques left to pray in and with most squashed in Rafah, the Southernmost part of the Gaza Strip, the Palestinian people do not lose hope. On the evening of the first fast, there were videos of children celebrating the arrival of the Holy month. Muslims stay outside to pray in the rubble to lay down their head and plead to the God above to ease their suffering. Their faith has not been affected by the genocide. In fact their faith is stronger, with people continuing to fast no matter what comes at them. They remind us that faith can move mountains and that no matter how bleak things are there is a higher power who is willing to listen.

This Ramadan, while difficult, has shown people the value of having a God. These people are invincible. Here’s hoping that the suffering of Muslims everywhere is eased soon.