Midlands Arts Centre marks Ramadan with community Iftar

People from across Birmingham who are celebrating Ramadan have been invited to gather to break their fast at a community Iftar.The multi-faith event will be held at the Midlands Art Centre (MAC) on Monday from 17:15 GMT.An evening of sharing food and prayers will be free to invited guests and their families. The art centre has also commissioned local artist and printmaker Haseebah Ali to create a mural inside the building for visitors to enjoy throughout the month.
Ramadan is the most important time in the Islamic calendar, when Muslims fast and refrain from eating or drinking between dawn and sunset.Muslims also believe it is a time for self-reflection and renewing their faith to Allah, with giving charity, also known as zakat and reciting special evening prayers known as Taraweeh, being an important aspect of the month.It will be the second year that the MAC has hosted an Iftar to mark the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. The community dinner will be broadcast live on BBC Midlands Today at 18:30 GMT.
During the fast, two meals are eaten - one before the fast begins at dawn known as suhoor and another at sunset known as iftar where families sit together and break their fasts with dates and water.All adults who are well and fit are obligated to fast during Ramadan, with young children, pregnant woman, elderly and sick people exempted.During the holy month, mosques open their doors for iftars most days.
Follow BBC Birmingham on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

Daily Mirror

10 hours ago

• Daily Mirror

Gardeners urged to grow unlimited supply of £1.50 herb bought in supermarkets

Gardeners will never need to pick up these herbs again in the supermarket if they follow these handy tips to grow their own If you've ever considered growing your own garden, this low-budget herb hack is the perfect gateway. A cooking pro on TikTok is sharing how you can get an 'unlimited supply' of your favourite herbs, including coriander and mint. The account, zaynahbakes, recently posted a video sharing a beginner's guide to herb gardening. ‌ Zaynah Din is the author of the cookbook Desified: Delicious recipes for Ramadan, Eid & every day. In the video which has garnered over 270,000 views, Zaynah holds two store-bought herb pots, which retail for around £1.50 in supermarkets, and provides instruction on how to grow coriander and mint at home. ‌ 'You only need a handful of things,' promises Zaynah before listing the supplies. 'Some compost, some larger pots, a little shovel and gardening gloves - which are optional.' Zaynah then begins carefully slicing open the bag of compost with a knife. 'Take your herb pot. Squeeze it to loosen the soil and it should just come out in one go.' Being mindful to keep the soil intact makes for a clean transfer that doesn't disturb the roots. 'If you know anything about gardening or herbs,' says Zaynah, 'you'll know that mint is very invasive and it grows really quickly. Kind of like weeds.' For that reason, Zaynah says the mint will quickly 'take over' whichever planter you put it in. You should be a bit more strategic about which planter you choose for your coriander, advised Zaynah. 'You don't want to put your coriander from [the small store-bought] pot into a massive planter. Because actually if you have too much room it will kill your plant. ‌ 'You wanna do it in stages,' she says, 'from small to medium and then move it into a larger pot.' 'Take your plant, your little pot of herbs here and - without ripping the roots too much - you want to separate - crack it open.' Zaynah uses her bare hands to crumble open the stiff soil - but again, you can use gardening gloves for this process if you prefer. ‌ Zaynah advises viewers to be gentle to avoid killing too many of the roots, though she promises they will grow back and replenish in any case. The chef also adds a tip for at-home cooks: 'Cut off [the] coriander herbs on the top and use them in your cooking because they'll grow back in a few days'. Taking her own advice, she cuts off a few leaves from the store-bought plant. The trim will also keep the plant from getting tangled, Zaynah advises. After ripping the store-bought plant into quarters, Zaynah says the next step is to fill up your planters with compost - breaking it up as you go. Once the planter is about halfway full, you can then use the shovel to make a little space for each of the broken up segments of coriander. Once each plant is situated in its designated spot, you can then take some extra compost and fill in gaps around the plant. Repeat the exact same process with the mint plant. 'If you love cooking like I do, it's a very special feeling when you start to use the ingredients that you grew yourself in your garden,' shares Zaynah.

South Wales Argus

3 days ago

• South Wales Argus

Newport's Islamic history remembered at Eid-ul-Adha celebration

The celebration was organised by the Islamic Society of Wales and its Secretary, Mubarak Ali. The Muslim festival celebrates sacrifice and duty and commemorates Prophet Ibrahim's willingness to sacrifice his son when God ordered him to. The gathering heard speeches about community cohesion, diversity and tolerance in a multi-faith world and the importance of togetherness in difficult and uncertain times. Mr Ali also spoke warmly about the history and contribution of the first prominent generation of post war Muslims who settled in Newport, including his father Ghulam Qadir, who came to Gwent in the early 1960s. The men from many Commonwealth countries, especially Pakistan, came to Wales for opportunities and a new life, said Mr Ali. He said many men would live in a shared house, which at the earliest stage was 20 Hill Street, Baneswell. That community now has its descendants in Newport and they are familiar faces in and around the city. That initial community opened its first Mosque in 1973, by digging out a cellar in Potter Street, Pill, before moving to Llanwern Street the following year. They then moved on to Stow Hill in 1977, before arriving at Victoria Road, in 2008, where the Islamic Society for Wales remains to this day. Mentioned in speeches were founders and early movers such as trustees of the Mosque and Islamic Society for Wales: Sabair Hussain, Ghulam Mohammad, Molazam Hussein and original President of the Mosque and Islamic Society for Wales, Yusuf Ali, now retired. Speaking after the event Mubarak Ali expressed his hopes: 'It was a well-received event and that listening is so important during these difficult times. 'We are so happy to come here and talk of community cohesion, peace and bringing different communities together. I would like to thank our hosts for their generosity and warmth. "Let's all hope for peace in our shared world,' he concluded. Guests in attendance included: Kate Thomas, Lord Mayor of Newport, Jane Mudd, Police and Crime Commissioner for Gwent and Chief Superintendent Carl Williams also of Gwent Police.

South Wales Guardian

14-06-2025

• South Wales Guardian

Family of young couple killed in Air India crash speak of their loss

Zaheera Nanabawa said Akeel Nanabawa, his wife Hannaa Vorajee and their four-year-old daughter Sara Nanabawa would be missed 'tremendously'. Mr Nanabawa ran a recruitment firm while his wife volunteered at a local Islamic school in Gloucester where they lived. Speaking with other family members, Ms Nanabawa said her cousin was the 'glue' that held their family together. 'We'd often have fun at games nights and even when the older ones of us were not there Akeel would make a lot of efforts to engage with the young people in the family,' she said. 'They were away as part of their trip to Singapore and Malaysia, before they went to India, and we had two family events and we all really missed them there. 'We could kind of feel the lack of their presence. 'This whole news is absolutely shocking and devastating for us, and it will leave a hole within our family, but we are together and with each other where we can kind of console each other. 'They were so young in terms of their age and they were lifted together. They are going to be sorely, sorely missed. 'But we feel that their legacy is really going to live on.' Ms Nanabawa thanked the many people who had offered messages of condolences since the news of Thursday's Air India crash. 'As Muslims we pray a lot and we were thinking about what type of prayers they made,' she said. 'That they were lifted together from this realm at the same time, there is a lot of comfort in that. 'We are going to miss them tremendously but hopefully they're together. 'That does give us a lot of peace because they were so closely knit together as a family. 'If Akeel had survived or one of the others had survived without the others it would have been devastating. 'We do feel that there is a peace with them being lifted together.' Ms Nanabawa spoke of the couple's generosity with their time and would help anyone in need. 'Akeel would give his heart out to anybody at any time for anything,' she said. 'If you wanted something he would be there. He would constantly be just trying to give you things, whether it be a phone number to somebody that can help you with your car or dentist abroad. 'We believe this is part of their giving in this world and may they recoup in the hereafter.' She added: 'We're all just absolutely totally in shock. 'But seeing people coming to the family home, seeing the messages of condolences, finding out the things that we didn't even know that they were involved in that they were doing, we hope will continue to bring them benefit. 'As a family and as a community we've been inundated with lots and lots and lots of messages. 'We know the impact of this is going to be far-reaching and far wide and we thank the wider community for their messages of support. 'It's an opportunity for people to look at their own lives and reflect and just think about the wide meaning of life.'