Posted August 08, 2013 07:20:43
It is a day of celebration for Australian Muslims, as they mark the end of the month of fasting from sunrise to sunset for Ramadan.
The festival of Eid al-Fitr traditionally occurs with the first sighting of the new moon.
Hundreds of people are are filling mosques, showgrounds and public halls across Australia to attend the early morning congregational prayers.
However, amid the day of celebration and sweet treats, many Australian Muslims are concerned about family members across the middle east.
Mohammed Helel lives in Sydney's inner west, but has family in Cairo, and says Eid just will not be the same this year.
"I'm concerned that they will not have that quality time that the Egyptians used to have, the happy times," he said.
"For the adults we will enjoy it as much as we can and actually pray for our families in Egypt."
He says the effects of the political turmoil in Egypt will play upon his family's enjoyment of the Eid festival.
"People in Egypt are not really settled, there are some issues with the military coup and people demanding their rights and so on," Mr Helel said.
"In every family there are all differing opinions, and it is not really a happy time as we used to have in Egypt."
At Lakemba in Sydney's south-west, heavy rain is failing to dampen the spirit of many hundreds of people flowing into Lakemba mosque.
Roads around the mosque have been blocked off to allow the congregation to fill the area.
Topics:islam, religion-and-beliefs, community-and-multicultural-festivals, australia
