UN Secretary General Concerned Many Muslim Citizens Can't Celebrate Eid Al-Fitr

JAKARTA - United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed concern about Muslim communities in a number of countries that were unable to celebrate Eid al-Fitr due to conflict.

"Every year, I congratulate Eid al-Fitr to Muslim communities around the world," Guterres said through his official account on social media X quoted by ANTARA, Wednesday, April 10.

"My heart is devastated when I know that in Gaza, Sudan, and in many other places, very many Muslim communities cannot celebrate it well due to conflict and hunger," the UN Secretary General added.

Sudan has been hit by a civil war between the country's armed forces and a paramilitary group of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) since April last year.

As a result of the conflict, more than 13,000 people were killed and 8 million others were forced to flee, according to the United Nations. In addition, 25 million people, or half of Sudan's population, are now dependent on humanitarian aid.

Meanwhile, Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip since October 7, 2023 has killed more than 33,000 Palestinians. Almost all infrastructure in the area was destroyed by Israeli attacks.

About 1.9 million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip are now forced to flee to Rafah City in the southern part of the area. Poor humanitarian conditions put refugees at risk of exposure to disease and acute hunger.