“This Ramadan is not like the previous ones,” said one local as the Muslim holy month of fasting began. “The war has taken away all meaning from it.”
Bags of aromatic spices, boxes of dates, frozen chicken and fresh produce. Food and other goods that were in short supply during the war have returned to Gaza's shops and street markets just in time for the holy fasting month of Ramadan. And the Israeli bombs have stopped.
But the shadow of war hangs over what was once one of the area’s most joyous seasons, and life in Gaza has not even begun to return to normal. Street vendors have refrained from performing the special songs they usually perform during Ramadan, and even though there is more food in the shops, many are struggling to afford it.
The first phase of the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas lasted a month and a half, but it was supposed to end on Saturday, which coincides with the first day of the dawn-to-dusk Ramadan fast. It could be extended, but so far little has been done.
Maysa Arafa, 29, who said her brother was killed in the war, is living in a tent with other relatives as they clear the rubble of their destroyed home in northern Gaza, hoping to move into one of the intact rooms.
“What I want most is for my brother to come back. That would be the only thing that would make Ramadan feel like it used to,” Ms. Arafa said while shopping in central Gaza City. “This is not the Ramadan we knew, or even the life we knew.”
Before the war, Ramadan was one of the most joyous holidays in Gaza. Crowds flocked to mosques and the streets were decorated with colorful lanterns typical of Ramadan.
