Arab Israelis prepare for subdued Ramadan

For many years, Arab Israeli towns held annual “Ramadan markets” on the nights of Ramadan, an idea borrowed from traditional Christmas markets. The biggest of them, based in the town of Taibeh, has been cancelled this year. “Every year, the city of Taibeh has hosted the Ramadan market, a festival of culture and ritual, attended by tens of thousands of people from here and elsewhere. The event will not take place this year. There can be no doubt that Ramadan will be very different this year. On this holy month, we will pray to God that this plague passes,” Taibeh’s mayor, attorney Shuaa Mansour, told Al-Monitor.

Mahmoud Boqaee, head of the Sha’ab local council in the north, explained, “My colleagues, the heads of the local authorities and myself have been hard at work on a plan to deal with the month of Ramadan, given the outbreak of the coronavirus. Some of the ideas raised, and which I personally encourage, include preparing sweets at home, or having bakeries and candy stores deliver them to homes, in order to avoid crowding in the stores. Similarly, we suggest that the taraweeh prayers held at home be broadcast by the media or social networks.”

Ramadan features all sorts of special candies and pastries, the most famous of them being qatayef. Under normal circumstances, people rush to the sweetshops and stock up in the hours leading up to the iftar meal. But all this has changed this year. Samara Brothers Sweets, one of the best-known sweetshops among Arab Israelis, shared their deliberations about what to do as a result of COVID-19. Muhammad Samara, who manages the shop in the town of Tira, told Al-Monitor, “Middle Eastern sweets such as kanafe, qatayef and baklava are essential ingredients of the iftar meal. The shops prepare well in advance for this month, because sales go up dramatically. This year, as a result of the coronavirus and Ministry of Health directives, we are instructed to take steps to ensure that shops are not overcrowded, especially in the hour leading up to the iftar. We will follow these instructions and adapt so that we can continue to serve our customers. What is certain is that Ramadan will be different this year in every imaginable way.”

The pandemic has paralyzed the global economy and Israel, where numerous businesses are suffering, is no exception. Poverty in Israel has only gotten worse as a result of COVID-19. Fortunately, quite a few civil and religious organizations have been reaching out to the needy, especially now, during the holiday season. One of the most prominent of these groups is the Islamic Movement, which warns that many more people have fallen into poverty amid the pandemic.

A report by Middle East analyst Eran Singer of the Israel Public Broadcasting Corporation shows that many more people are in need. Nevertheless, Knesset member Waleed Taha of the Islamic Movement offered to help the ultra-Orthodox Jewish residents of Bnei Brak as they prepared for their Passover celebrations. Perhaps this is what is great about Ramadan, a month devoted to helping others regardless of race, religion or gender.