FRIDAY, March 29, 2024
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Thai Muslims swap mosques for social media as Covid dampens Eid celebrations

Thai Muslims swap mosques for social media as Covid dampens Eid celebrations

Celebration of the Eid al-Fitr festival was muted in Thailand on Thursday, as the Covid-19 crisis continued to take a toll – especially on Bangkok and its vicinity. Muslims worldwide celebrate Eid al-Fitr as the end of the Ramadan fasting period.

Traditionally, Muslims gather at mosques for the Eid prayer, before visiting relatives or friends at home to eat sweet dishes. Zakat, or almsgiving, also plays a prominent role at Eid.

However, this year Covid-19 dampened celebrations among Thai Muslims, who make up around 5 per cent of the population.

A source told The Nation Thailand that this year there was no congregation at his community mosque since locals decided to conduct the Eid prayer at home.

Neither was there a communal celebration with relatives and friends. Instead, sweets made at home were delivered to their cousins’ house, he said.

The source explained that though Eid this year was practically silent, communication via phones and internet demonstrated that Muslims were not really parted from each other.

Meanwhile, this year’s zakat donations were transferred via middlemen to those in need, including orphanages. In the past years, almsgiving was done by hand, the source said.

Muslims in several other countries celebrated Eid al-Fitr as usual this year. Photos published by Al Jazeera show people performing the Eid prayer at mosques or town squares in Indonesia, Turkey, China, Pakistan and Scotland. Almost all worshippers in the photos wore medical masks.

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