'Sad Eid': Muslim Feast a Distant Dream in Sudan

A vendor waits for customers on his horse-drawn cart at a livestock market ahead of the Muslim feast of Eid al-Adha in al-Hasaheisa, about 120 kilometres south of Sudan's capital, on June 26, 2023. (Photo by AFP)
A vendor waits for customers on his horse-drawn cart at a livestock market ahead of the Muslim feast of Eid al-Adha in al-Hasaheisa, about 120 kilometres south of Sudan's capital, on June 26, 2023. (Photo by AFP)
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'Sad Eid': Muslim Feast a Distant Dream in Sudan

A vendor waits for customers on his horse-drawn cart at a livestock market ahead of the Muslim feast of Eid al-Adha in al-Hasaheisa, about 120 kilometres south of Sudan's capital, on June 26, 2023. (Photo by AFP)
A vendor waits for customers on his horse-drawn cart at a livestock market ahead of the Muslim feast of Eid al-Adha in al-Hasaheisa, about 120 kilometres south of Sudan's capital, on June 26, 2023. (Photo by AFP)

For many Sudanese struggling to survive the war, a taste of the sheep Muslims traditionally sacrifice for the feast of Eid al-Adha is but a distant memory.

The conflict, now in its third month, has brought death and turmoil and displaced millions in the country that was already poverty-stricken before the fighting erupted.

Like many Khartoum residents, Hanan Adam fled with her six children when the battles broke out in mid-April between the regular army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

Now living at a makeshift camp south of the city, her family is trying to celebrate Eid far from home and without much joy.

"Under these conditions, Eid will be sad," she told AFP from the camp in Al-Hasaheisa, about 120 kilometers from the capital.

Not a day goes by without her children, aged between two and 15, asking when they will return home, she said.

Well before the conflict began, two-thirds of Sudan's population was living below the poverty line, and one in three relied on humanitarian aid to make ends meet, according to UN figures.

This year meat is a rare luxury as the war has disrupted daily life and trade, shuttered markets and banks, and left millions trapped inside their homes, running low on bare essentials.

"We cannot even buy mutton," said Mawaheb Omar, a mother of four who has refused to abandon her Khartoum home despite the gun battles and air strikes.

Eid will be "miserable and tasteless" this year, she added.

Omar Ibrahim, who lives with his three children in Khartoum's Shambat district, said the rituals of Eid have become an "unattainable dream".

The RSF has announced a unilateral Eid ceasefire, but many Sudanese are wary after a series of previous truce pledges were all quickly violated by both sides.

"Will the guns be silent for Eid?", asked Ibrahim.

The war has also raged in Sudan's cattle-raising regions: Darfur and Kordofan, which were already among the country's poorest before the war.

Mohammed Babiker, a livestock trader in Wad Madani, 200 kilometres south of the capital, said he used to bring his animals to the capital and elsewhere to sell for Eid.

But now "herders can no longer bring their cattle," he told AFP, surrounded by a flock of sheep on one of the city's main streets.

Othman Mubarak, another trader, said this year he has "sold nothing" in Khartoum.

"The Feast of Sacrifice is the time of year when we would make the most sales," he said. "But this time my colleagues and I are forcibly unemployed."



Border Town’s Residents Rebuild in South Lebanon as Hezbollah Leader Calls for Israeli Withdrawal 

A bulldozer equipped with a drill works on the rubble of destroyed houses, caused by the Israeli air and ground offensive, in the town of Khiam, southern Lebanon, Monday, Feb. 17, 2025. (AP)
A bulldozer equipped with a drill works on the rubble of destroyed houses, caused by the Israeli air and ground offensive, in the town of Khiam, southern Lebanon, Monday, Feb. 17, 2025. (AP)
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Border Town’s Residents Rebuild in South Lebanon as Hezbollah Leader Calls for Israeli Withdrawal 

A bulldozer equipped with a drill works on the rubble of destroyed houses, caused by the Israeli air and ground offensive, in the town of Khiam, southern Lebanon, Monday, Feb. 17, 2025. (AP)
A bulldozer equipped with a drill works on the rubble of destroyed houses, caused by the Israeli air and ground offensive, in the town of Khiam, southern Lebanon, Monday, Feb. 17, 2025. (AP)

Sabah Abdullah comes to her hometown in Lebanon every morning and sits next to her destroyed home. She is waiting for experts from Hezbollah's construction arm to compensate her for the damage caused by the Israel-Hezbollah war that has left her homeless.

The 66-year-old woman from Khiam now rents a home in the nearby village of Kawkaba and is repairing her small grocery store, which was badly damaged by the 13-month war that ended in late November as a result of a US-brokered ceasefire. The war has left more than 4,000 people dead and over 16,000 wounded in Lebanon and caused damage worth billions of dollars.

“Damage can be compensated but the loss of souls cannot be replaced,” said Abdullah as she sat on a plastic chair in the sun outside her shop.

Israeli forces will remain in parts of southern Lebanon

The 60-day ceasefire that was supposed to end on Jan. 27 with an Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon and Hezbollah ending its armed presence along the border area was extended until Tuesday. But an Israeli official said Monday that Israeli forces will remain in five strategic locations in southern Lebanon after the deadline.

One of these locations is the Hamamis hill on the southern outskirts of Khiam. On Monday, bulldozers could be seen from a distance at work building what appeared to be fortifications in an apparent sign that Israel’s military is planning to stay long beyond Tuesday’s deadline.

Israeli bulldozers work on the Hamamis hill near the town of Khiam, southern Lebanon, Monday, Feb. 17, 2025. (AP)

Hezbollah leader Sheikh Naim Qassem said in a speech Sunday that Israel has to fully withdraw from Lebanon on Tuesday, saying “there is no pretext for five points nor other details.” He added that the Lebanese state should prevent Israel from staying in the country after Tuesday as stated in the ceasefire deal.

The Israel-Hezbollah war began a day after Hamas carried out its deadly attack in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023 killing 1,200 people and taking about 250 people hostage triggering the Israel-Hamas war. The Israel-Hezbollah war intensified as of Sept. 23, when Israel expanded its attacks and killed Hezbollah’s longtime top leader and one of its founders, Hassan Nasrallah.

Widespread damage in Khiam

Khiam, one of the largest towns close to the Israeli border, suffered widespread damage, including entire blocks that were turned to piles of debris, while graffiti left behind by Israeli troops could be seen on the walls as well as inside homes. The town's cemetery suffered severe damage, with many graves blown out.

On Monday, workers were removing debris in different locations in Khiam as many residents come during the day to spend a few hours at their homes and leave before sunset since the town still has no electricity or running water. New poles were being put in place by the country’s state-run electricity company as the infrastructure suffered severe damage.

“In Khiam everyone was martyred,” read a graffiti on a wall in Arabic. “Khiam is Golani’s graveyard,” another one read referring to Israel’s Golani Brigade.

In a building on the eastern edge of Khiam, a woman showed a journalist a Star of David sprayed in red at the entrance of her apartment. The woman, who asked not to be named for safety reasons, then walked through her apartment showing a reporter the damage in the sitting room and kitchen.

Lebanese citizens check the destruction on their house caused by the Israeli war, in their hometown Khiam, southern Lebanon, Monday, Feb. 17, 2025. (AP)

Abdallah said when she first came to Khiam days after the ceasefire went into effect in late November, she found that hungry cats and dogs inside her badly damaged shop had eaten cakes, croissants and chocolates. The metal door of her shop was blown wide open, she said.

Seeing her home, which was built by her late father, destroyed saddened her but Abdallah said she is happy that none of her siblings or relatives were hurt during the war.

‘The future is obscure’

Abdallah said that soon after the war ended, Hezbollah’s construction arm Jihad al-Binaa paid her $12,000, of which $8,000 were to compensate her for lost furniture and $4,000 for a year's rent.

Abdallah said that since the Israel-Hezbollah war began she rented a house in Marakaba and had spent most of her savings and was selling some of her jewelry. She said she is now waiting for government experts to visit her and estimate the losses to pay her for rebuilding her two-story house that she shared with her brother.

“I will rebuild my house but the future is obscure. We live close to the border,” Abdallah said, referring to repeated wars with Israel over the past decades.

Another Khiam resident, Dalal Abdallah, said if Israel decides to stay in Lebanon, Israel will be eventually forced to leave again.

“Valuable blood and souls were paid for this land,” she said. She added that “no one should think that we will leave our land.”