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The Tufts Daily
Where you read it first | Thursday, March 28, 2024

Muslim leaders justify US bombing during Ramadan

Leaders of Tufts' Muslim community say the US should not suspend its bombing campaign in Afghanistan during Ramadan, the Muslim holy month that began Nov. 16 and does not end until mid-December.

Ramadan is not a time when everything shuts down, according to Imam Noureddine Hawat, Tufts' Muslim spiritual leader. "Ramadan is a month where we fast, but it is not a month for stopping war," he said. "There are four different months that you cannot start a war, but Ramadan is not one of them."

The month of Ramadan in the Muslim lunar calendar is a time of prayer and reflection. During daylight hours, practicing Muslims abstain from eating, drinking, and smoking. The first day of the next month in the lunar calendar, Shawwal, is set aside for celebration.

Hawat said Ramadan is a time of intense prayer, but that Muslims are not supposed to make changes to their everyday routines.

"Just because it's Ramadan does not mean that everything should stop," Arab Student Association Vice President Seif Shieshakly said. But asked about US bombing during Ramadan, Shieshakly said he "could see how some people could get upset."

Other religious figures recognize the importance of Ramadan to Islam. "It's a time of reflection and compassion," Interim Chaplain Reverend Patricia Kepler said. "It's important for us in the US to appreciate the depth of what this celebration means for observant Muslims."

But Kepler isn't sure if stopping the war in Afghanistan during the fast is necessary. "Should we pause during Ramadan, Christmas, or Passover?" she asked. "I don't know."

"The larger question is whether we should be doing this large scale bombing at all," Kepler said.

Many Muslims, however, say that if the cause is right, the timing of the fighting should not matter. "If the objective is to fight terrorism, it won't matter if it's Ramadan or not," Shieshakly said. This war is justified, Hawat added, saying the US should not relax its actions in deference to the Muslim fast.