The traditions of Eid al-Fitr are almost the same in most Syrian provinces.
4 June 2019 | Eid Al-Fitr begins immediately after the end of Ramadan for all Muslims around the world. It is three days of holidays after 29/30 days of fasting. (All photos were taken in 4 June 2019)
The Eid Al-Fitr began with prayers in mosques in the early hours of the morning, where people greet each other with the phrase Happy Eid to the last day of the holidays.
After prayers people go to visit the cemeteries, then they take the children to play some hours with swings.
The swings are placed in public squares only twice a year, during Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha.
On the first day, usually, families gather with their relatives who gift the children with sums of money.
In some cities, there is a big lunch gathers family and relatives in the first day.
New clothes for children is important. Clothing markets usually also do not close the last day of Ramadan and are crowded with people who buy new clothes, especially for children.
Various Eid sweets are also essential, they were mostly made at home, but in the last two decades they have been bought from stores that make them with luxurious quality.
In the Al-Midan neighbourhood, which is have the best sweets shops in the Syrian capital, Damascus, sweet kitchens were working in the last ten days of Ramadan 24 hours a day at their highest capacity to meet the needs of the market.
On the second day, families spend time with friends and neighbours, while the third day, with the children outside the house usually in restaurants.
These customs are not considered religious rituals, which are limited to praying and spending three days holiday. Therefore, the rituals of Eid in Syria is very differ from the rituals in other countries in the Middle East, such as Turkey and Saudi Arabia.
Since 2011 thousands of Syrian families spend the Eid holidays without their loved ones.
The forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad have killed about 350,000 Syrians, while the Syrian intelligence has detained about 130,000 Syrians since the beginning of the Syrian revolution in 2011, which turned into a devastating war that forced about 12 million Syrians to flee inside and outside the country, according to the Paris-based Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR).