Palestinians prepare for Ramadan in shadow of Israel-Gaza war
- Hopes for a ceasefire, which would have allowed Ramadan to pass peacefully, appear to have been disappointed with talks in Cairo apparently stalled
- Officials saw crescent moon on Sunday night in Saudi Arabia, home to Islam’s holiest sites, marking start of Ramadan for many of the world’s Muslims
Palestinians have been preparing for Ramadan in sombre mood with heightened security measures by Israeli police and the spectre of war and hunger in Gaza overshadowing the normally festive Muslim holy month as talks to secure a ceasefire stalled.
Thousands of police have been deployed around the narrow streets of the Old City in Jerusalem, where tens of thousands of worshippers are expected every day at the Al Aqsa mosque compound, one of the holiest sites in Islam.
The area, considered the most sacred place by Jews who know it as Temple Mount, has been a long-standing flashpoint for trouble and was one of the starting points of the last war in 2021 between Israel and Hamas, the Islamist movement that controls Gaza.
That 10-day conflict has been dwarfed by the current war, which is now in its sixth month. It began on October 7 when thousands of Hamas fighters stormed into Israel, killing some 1,200 people, by Israeli tallies.
Israel’s relentless campaign in Gaza has caused increasing alarm across the world as the growing risk of famine threatens to add to a death toll that has already passed 31,000.
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Israeli forces open fire on crowd of Palestinians seeking aid,, as Gaza death toll surpasses 30,000
After some confusion last month when hard-right Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir said he wanted restrictions on worshippers at Al Aqsa, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the numbers admitted would be similar to last year.
