FARGO — Homes, mosques and community spaces throughout the metro are filled with warmth as Muslims gather to celebrate the holy month of Ramadan.
For some, however, this year is different.
The war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza that reignited on Oct. 7 means that for Muslims in Fargo-Moorhead, this month of happy family gatherings comes with a backdrop of mourning and fear.
One North Dakota State University student
is waiting to see if her sister in Gaza can make it safely out of the country with her young family of six — including a newborn baby — amid fighting and bombing that already claimed the lives of nearly everyone in her family.
Mukhtar Maqadim leads Ramadan services at the Islamic Society of Fargo and Moorhead in south Fargo on Friday, March 22, 2024.
David Samson / The Forum
At the Islamic Society of Fargo-Moorhead, people gather in large numbers to pray and celebrate the month of Ramadan with reminders of the conflict sprinkled throughout the mosque.
‘An open sore in the Muslim body’
For those celebrating, Ramadan kicks off a full month of gathering with family and friends, regular prayer and religious study, as well as a host of traditions. This year, Ramadan runs from March 11 to April 9, and during that period Muslims fast from sunup to sundown.
One family invited The Forum to join them for an iftar dinner — the meal where Muslims break their fast — in their south Fargo home on March 27.
Heidi Soliman brings food out to the dinner table for iftar, the meal eaten by Muslims at sunset to break their fast during Ramadan, at her family’s home in south Fargo on March 27, 2024.
Chris Flynn / The Forum
“We’re almost there, guys,” Heidi Soliman told her children as they helped set the table just before sundown.
Even after a full day of fasting, 11-year-old Siraj Soliman didn’t rush to put his tablet down when his mother called him into the kitchen to break his fast with the traditional date and glass of water.
Fourteen-year-old cross-country athlete Julianna Soliman said fasting during Ramadan reminds her of the trials of running.
“Even though they (races) are difficult and they are hard, when you’re done, you feel good afterwards and accomplished,” Julianna said.
Before digging into the iftar dinner, Dr. Mahmoud Soliman led his family and their dinner guest, Marwa Jarada, in prayer for several minutes.
Siraj took The Forum on a tour of all the foods on the table, describing the “delicious” kofta as “oversized and deformed meatballs” and his mother’s mac and cheese as “the best in the world.”
The Solimon family and guests gather for fftar, the meal eaten by Muslims at sunset to break their fast during Ramadan, at their home in south Fargo on March 27, 2024.
Chris Flynn / The Forum
Knafeh was served as a dessert to the delight of everyone at the table.
“It’s a must,” Jarada laughed, noting that the sweet dessert was a vital part of iftar dinners in too many countries to count.
Siraj — who just returned from visiting family in Egypt with his father — said that while abroad he ate so much knafeh that he was sick of it.
1/3: The Solimon family and guests gather for Iftar, the meal eaten by Muslims at sunset to break their fast during Ramadan, at their home in south Fargo on March 27, 2024. From left to right: Julianna Solimon, Sirah Solimon, Mahmoud Solimon, Marwa Jarada, and Gabriella Solimon.
Chris Flynn / The Forum
2/3: From left to right: Marwa Jarada, Heidi Solimon, Siraj Solimon, Gabriella Solimon, Mahmoud Solimon and Julianna Solimon at the Solimon home in south Fargo on March 27 2024. They talked about the meaning and significance of Ramadan. It is considered one of the holiest months of the year for Muslims.
Chris Flynn / The Forum
3/3: The Solimon family, with friend and guest Marwa Jarada, third from right, prays after breaking their fast at sunset for Ramadan and before their main meal at their home in south Fargo on March 27, 2024.
Chris Flynn / The Forum
“If you don’t eat dessert, you have to make up for it by fasting another day,” Mahmoud Soliman joked with his son.
The evening was more than good food and family merriment, however.
“One thing that is different about this Ramadan, of course, is all of the things happening in Palestine,” Heidi Soliman said. “That is something that is really heavy on a lot of Muslims’ hearts.”
Not eating or drinking all day gives her family a glimpse into the hardship faced by Palestinians in Gaza, she said.
“They are dying of hunger. They fast, too, (during Ramadan) but when they are breaking their fast they don’t have anything to break their fast with,” Heidi Soliman said. “Not even clean water.”
Some Palestinians are resorting to eating animal feed and weeds to survive,
NPR reports,
and the United Nations warned that half of the 2.3 million people in Gaza could be experiencing a famine by summer.
Marwa Jarada was a dinner guest for iftar at the Solimon home in south Fargo on March 27, 2024. Iftar is the meal eaten by Muslims at sunset to break their fast during Ramadan.
Chris Flynn / The Forum
On Wednesday, NDSU student Jarada joined the Solimans for their iftar dinner.
Marwa Jarada’s mother Nima Ali Ibrahim Jarada, 54, and father, Nasr Rbah Salama Jarada, 67, were killed in their apartment after an air raid that flattened buildings in Gaza. They were two of 16 family members killed in the same airstrike.
Contributed / Marwa Jarada
“Marwa lost her parents, her siblings, her nephews and nieces (in Gaza),” Heidi Soliman said.
Nearly all of Jarada’s immediate family was killed when an Israeli airstrike leveled their family home and chunks of their neighborhood last October.
Jarada’s sister is still trapped in Rafa, a southern city in Gaza. She is “urgently” trying to escape with her young family of six, Heidi Soliman said.
Well over a million people have taken refuge in Rafah as the fighting and bombings continue,
CNN reports
, living in temporary shelters with nowhere else to go.
Marwa Jarada’s sister, Ashjan, stands with her husband, Fadi, and children Ahmed (8), Ghaith (12) and Akram (14) before a make-shift shelter. Not pictured is their newborn son, Adam.
Contributed / Marwa Jarada
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is planning a ground invasion into Rafah — despite concern from the U.S. over massive civilian casualties — in an effort to destroy Hamas,
CNN reports.
In the last six months, over 32,000 Palestinians and 1,200 Israelis have been killed,
according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.
Two-thirds of the dead were women and children.
Jarada’s sister just gave birth to a baby boy, Adam, in a tent. Without any medical care for the newborn, the family is facing additional urgency to reach safety, Heidi Soliman said.
Marwa Jarada’s newborn nephew, Adam, was born in Rafah after his parents and three brothers were displaced in the war between Israel and Gaza.
Contributed / Marwa Jarada
They are the only living members of Jarada’s family, Heidi Soliman said, apart from her brother, Tamer, who is safe in Canada.
“Every time I call … she is crying,”
Tamer Jarada told CBC.
“She is begging me to help her.”
The Solimans started a
GoFundMe to help the family get a visa to escape first to Egypt and, ultimately, Canada.
Even from an ocean away, the situation in Gaza weighs heavily on his family’s heart, Mahmoud Soliman said.
“It is the thing that dominates every conversation, every day. Every thought in my life, actually,” Mahmoud Soliman said. “I wake up, I go to bed, I’m working. It doesn’t matter. It is the one thing we are all thinking about.
“It is an open sore in the Muslim body.”
Ramadan celebrations will never be the same for Jarada, but she fondly recalled past celebrations in Gaza when drummers would walk the streets in the predawn hours to wake families for their first prayers of the day.
When it came time to break their fast in Palestine, it was common for people to bring water and dates to workers still on the road, she said.
Every street was alive with celebrations after iftar. Bakers would sell small cookies covered in sesame seeds on the streets to passersby for a song.
The “vibes” of Ramadan were all around her, and it was “amazing,” she said.
Marwa Jarada with her mother and a sister in Gaza before 16 members of the Jarada family were killed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza.
Contributed / Marwa Jarada
“You will always be busy, surrounded by people. People come over and you go visiting them,” Jarada recalled. “When you’re surrounded by people similar to you, especially your family, it feels really better.”
Faith, family and friendship
Fargo resident Halid Jasic spends a lot of time during Ramadan visiting family and friends.
Ramadan may have changed since he moved to North Dakota, but he honors his Bosnian traditions and shares them with his new community.
“We have traditional Bosnian food that we prepare every day,” he told The Forum.
For him, the best part of Ramadan is “cherishing bonding time” and “sharing stories” with the people in his life.
All month, he is busy sharing home-cooked food during visits to family members and sick neighbors, he said.
Charity is a pillar of the Islamic faith, and during Ramadan, even more emphasis is placed on sharing.
“Ramadan is (a) month of giving to less fortunate ones,” Jasic said. “Helping neighbors, friends and community.”
During Ramadan, a person’s good deeds are rewarded by Allah tenfold, Fargo resident Abdul Zen told The Forum.
Prayers are offered during Ramadan services at the Islamic Center in south Fargo on Friday, March 22, 2024.
David Samson / The Forum
“When you come in to pray, you stand with your brothers … and sisters regardless if you’re rich or poor. … Once you sit down to pray to Allah, you’re all equal,” Zen said.
He spends time during Ramadan helping at the mosque, studying his faith and rereading the Quran.
Every Ramadan is an opportunity to become a better person, he said.
“We always pray to Allah, ‘Safeguard us, let us live ’til Ramadan,’” Zen said.
Drs. Malik Muhammad Anwar ul haq and Madiha Halim are kept busy all month creating Ramadan memories with their two young children, including a mix of traditions from their home country of Pakistan and new activities that are uniquely American.
Four-year-old Muhammad Ahad Anwar’s favorite part of the holiday is all the good food, Anwar ul haq laughed.
Fatuma stands with her 2-year-old daughter, Aisha, and her 10-month-old son, Ashra, inside the Islamic Society of Fargo-Moorhead on Friday, March 22, 2024.
Melissa Van Der Stad / The Forum
According to 6-year-old Hoorain Anwar, “yummy” noodles are the best dish around.
While Hoorain has asked to fast with her parents, she is still too young, Anwar ul haq said. Plenty of Muslims don’t fast during Ramadan, he said, including children and people who are ill or pregnant.
However, Hoorain gains extra “points” with Allah for doing good deeds and helping her parents in the kitchen, Halim said.
Worshippers gather for Ramadan services at the Islamic Society of Fargo-Moorhead in south Fargo on Friday, March 22, 2024.
David Samson / The Forum
Eid al-Fitr marks the last day of Ramadan and is celebrated with gusto around the world. The night before Eid is akin to Christmas Eve, Halim said, and the anticipation and excitement thrums through the community.
“There is a lot of hustle and bustle in markets on the last days of Ramadan back in Pakistan,” she said.
The streets light up every night after iftar as people head to the markets to celebrate, and families purchase new clothes for everyone and find gifts for friends and family, Halim said.
When she was a kid, it was the most exciting time of the year, she said.
In Pakistan, the women would go to the markets, and artists would decorate their hands with intricate henna designs.
Young adults would go out and party in Pakistan the night before Eid, Anwar ul haq said.
The family has kept these traditions alive for their children by ordering new clothes from Pakistan and helping Hoorain choose a henna set for some at-home artistry.
After spending much of his life in Pakistan, it was a shock when Anwar ul haq moved to the United States where not everyone celebrated Ramadan.
“I think Ramadan here in the U.S. is very different than back home,” he said.
In Pakistan, the whole community lit up during Ramadan with celebrations and festive feelings. In Fargo, the holiday is much less visible.
To preserve some of the magic for children, it’s much more common in America to decorate homes for Ramadan and do crafts with children to teach them about the celebration.
This helps kids connect to the holiday, he said, in the same way Christmas trees, pumpkins, turkeys and four-leaf clovers dominate their respective holidays.
Hoorain was especially proud of a lantern she made for Ramadan, decorated with white, pink, blue and green paper.
When asked what the best part of Ramadan was, Hoorain said, without hesitation, that it was seeing her friends and playing games.
“Every Ramadan, every Eid, has always been very special,” Halim said. “It’s just overall a very blessed month. You can just feel it.”
