Ramadan - Green Prophet

Vegetarian Ramadan Recipes From the Middle East

Arwa Aburawa — Fri, 11 Jul 2025 16:56:09 +0000

From Ma’amoul to Couscous, why not try a new vegetarian dish from the Middle East and North Africa region this Ramadan?

There are some dishes that evoke such strong memories of a festive occasion, that eating them any other time of the year feels wrong. For me, Qatayf (mini nut pancakes) and Mamoul (date cookies) are two things I only ever eat during Ramadan and so just seeing them gets me in the Ramadan spirit. Another great thing about these two succulent sweet pastries is that they are vegetarian and with enough sugar and calories to give you a post-fast energy boost.

Indeed there is an amazing array of special Ramadan dishes from around the Muslim world that are suitable for vegetarians. In an effort to encourage more Muslims (and non-Muslims!) to reduce their meat intake during this holy month, I have collated a list of delectable dishes and pastries that would make the perfect Vegetarian iftar.

After a long day of fasting, the last thing I want to eat is heavy, greasy food. It’s too demanding for your stomach and means you end up feeling very uncomfortable and lethargic. Vegetarian food is the answer. As long as you go easy on the pastries and sweets, vegetarian dishes tend to be fresher, healthier and lighter on the stomach.

I think soups are an absolute must during Ramadan. After a long day of fasting, nothing helps ease your thirst and hunger like a bowl of hot soup. I was lucky enough to try some tasty Moroccan Harira Soup when I was in Tangiers and I highly recommend it. It’s a lovely mix of lentils, chickpeas and vermicelli which is a particular Ramadan favourite. You could also try our Moroccan wheat soup recipe here which promises a hearty and warming bowl of goodness.

Salads are another must have and you can’t wrong with Tabbouleh and Fattoush. Check out this recipe for Quinoa Tabbouleh Salad for a modern twist on the traditional Tabbouleh by our resident cook Miriam Kresh.

You could also give Fattoush a try – made from leftover pitta bread, tomato, cucumber, mint and lots of other things you should have lying about in your kitchen, it makes a lovely starter. Here’s a great recipe for the traditional Lebanese dish and you could also throw in some avocado to give it a bit more weight.

For main dishes, give couscous a whirl this Ramadan with our very own lemon-scented vegetarian couscous. We even have a special vegan-friendly couscous recipe that you can try out.

Freekah, an ancient grain makes a lovely, hearty soup but could also be cooked as a main and stuffed in a Kobocha squash as you can see below.

Another great vegetarian dish which is a firm favourite even amongst the non-veggies is Imjadarra/Mujaddara. A very traditional Middle Eastern dish, Imjadarra it is made using either rice or bulgar wheat with green lentils, onions and some basic herbs and spices.

Finally to finish off any meal, something sweet. Arabic sweets in my personal opinion are quite tricky to pull off (but I find all pastries and cakes a conundrum to make…) but this recipe for Baklava looks simply enough.

You could also try to make the traditional Ramadan date cookie called Ma’amoul which would really impress your friends. Or even better, you could make the ultimate half-moon shaped Qatayef for a real taste of Ramadan.

For more on going green this Ramadan see:

Go Green This Ramadan (6 Steps)

The Eco-Mosque Checklist – 7 Steps to a Greener Mosque

Feasting on Fairtrade this Ramadan

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Luqaimat means Saudi Arabia did doughnut holes first

Isabella Hannah — Wed, 19 Mar 2025 08:33:34 +0000

Luqaimat are traditional Gulf donuts, often enjoyed during festive occasions, especially during the holy month of Ramadan. These small, fried dough balls are coated with honey, date molasses, or sugar syrup and sometimes garnished with black cumin seeds. The sweet, golden Luqaimat are a beloved treat, providing a perfect balance of crispy and soft textures. You can find them cooking in many Middle East kitchens and markets, even in Jaffa, Israel where there is a thriving Muslim population.

Luqaimat also called lokma, lugaimat or awameh (or loukoumades in Greek) are crisp on the outside, soft and fluffy on the inside, and absolutely delicious drizzled with a homemade sugar syrup.

During Ramadan, they are often served as a delicious dessert to break the fast, offering a sweet and comforting end to the iftar meal. The rich, syrup-soaked dough balls are not only a culinary delight but also a symbol of celebration, community, and tradition. In recent years, modern chefs have embraced the classic recipe and experimented with new variations, such as maple syrup, melted chocolate, vanilla, pistachio, and jam, adding contemporary twists to this cherished dish.

Try our simple and delicious recipe below to recreate these light, golden donuts at home and enjoy a taste of Saudi Arabia’s rich culinary heritage, especially during the Ramadan season.

Preparation Time: 1 hour

Ingredients

For the dough (serves 4 people):

170g all-purpose flour
12g sugar
1/4g salt
Oil for frying
4g instant yeast
13g cornstarch
200ml water

For the homemade syrup:

420g sugar
225ml water
3 cardamom pods
6ml lemon juice

Method

For the dough:

In a deep bowl, combine the flour, salt, sugar, cornstarch, and yeast until well mixed.
Gradually add water while stirring continuously for 2 minutes until a semi-liquid dough forms.
Cover the bowl and let the dough rest for 40 minutes to ferment.
Heat oil in a deep-frying pan over medium heat for 5 minutes until hot.
Reduce the heat to low, and drop spoonfuls of dough into the oil to form medium-sized balls.
Fry the dough balls, turning them continuously for 2 minutes until golden brown. Remove from the oil and drain. Repeat with the remaining dough.
Increase the heat to medium for 1 minute, then return the Luqaimat to the oil. Fry for another 2 minutes, turning them until golden brown and crispy on all sides.
Place the Luqaimat into the sugar syrup to soak thoroughly, then transfer them to a serving plate.

For the homemade syrup:

In a medium-sized saucepan, combine sugar, water, cardamom pods, and lemon juice. Heat over medium until it begins to boil (about 2 minutes).
Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 8 minutes, allowing it to cool. The syrup is now ready to use.

To Serve:

Dip the still-hot Luqaimat into the syrup, ensuring they are thoroughly coated.
Place three pieces on a serving plate.
Optionally, sprinkle with black and white sesame seeds for a decorative touch.
Serve immediately while they are crispy, paired with Saudi coffee for an authentic experience.

Luqaimat and Ramadan

PuckArabia adds cream cheese

Luqaimat are particularly cherished during Ramadan, where they play a special role in the iftar meal. After a day of fasting, the sweetness of Luqaimat provides a satisfying and energy-boosting treat to break the fast. The dough balls, soaked in syrup, are a source of comfort and a reminder of the rich cultural and culinary traditions of the Gulf region.

Luqaimat are not just a treat for the body but also a connection to the spirit of Ramadan, a time for reflection, family, and community. Sharing Luqaimat with loved ones during this special month brings people together, creating lasting memories and a sense of unity.

Enjoy your homemade Luqaimat, a delicious taste of Saudi Arabia’s rich culinary heritage, especially during the Ramadan season!

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Muslim Climate Watch and the Green Ramadan Calendar Download 2024

Karin Kloosterman — Thu, 07 Mar 2024 11:59:52 +0000

Nazish Qureshi, Muslim Climate Watch

Nazish Qureshi, the founder of Muslim Climate Watch says that the Muslim-fasting month of Ramadan offers “a wonderful pathway towards rejection of a culture of consumption and wastefulness, factors that have contributed to Earth’s pollution and accelerated global warming.

“Abstaining from food and choices that impede our self-actualization enables us to transcend the vices of greed and envy, which thrive in the realm of overindulgence and consumerism,” she says.

Green Muslims create a calendar for Ramadan

She founded Muslim Climate Watch to empower Muslims with the education and resources to lead the climate justice movement as khalifa on Earth. “We advocate for climate action rooted in Islamic principles and inspired by the teachings of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh).

Read Also: 11 books for eco-Muslims

“Through research-based education and advocacy, we amplify the voices of marginalized Muslims disproportionately affected by climate change.

As we enter this holy time for Muslims, Qureshi shares a resource developed together with Green Muslims, Green Ramadan, and Interfaith Power & Light –– a Ramadan Creation Care calendar, to print and post in your masjid or at home.

Get your Ramadan calendar here (links to PDF).

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This Ramadan, drop unwanted weight with mindful eating – it works!

Faisal O'Keefe — Mon, 06 Jun 2016 10:35:10 +0000

Eight pounds in as many weeks. Painlessly (and surprisingly) gone. Not enough to drop a dress size, but enough to send me hunting for a belt. And I credit…mindful eating. After a lifetime of core health beliefs built on the twin towers of eating less and moving more, this stuns me. Does it really come down to mind over matter?

When I started Project Me in April, I limited my rules to a handful of simple actions that could easily slide into my over-committed days. Down a water/vinegar cocktail on rising and up my activity level. Go near-teetotaler, with no at-home alcohol. Eat more soup. Record what I ate, and what I weighed. An honest assessment of my past two months’ performance shows I earned a C+. At best. Yet I still lost weight.

Not bad, especially in light of how this venture started: sipping coffees in an Amman restaurant with a good friend, talking about shared fitness goals. It was nearing lunchtime. We ordered up salads and continued to map a plan to smaller jeans. Waiting for the check, the restaurant manager approached. He explained that the place was looking to revise its menu and would we taste-test a few items for them? The gods howled.

A chef appeared and asked us to fill out a multiple-page checklist with our reactions and observations. She then sent out three full meals – plus dessert! They were delicious. And being chosen as Taste Testers just when we decided to get fit served up an equally delicious anecdote. Ironically, it also mirrored the very method that I had kicked off my project with: mindful eating.

The survey demanded that we look at the food. See it. Smell it. Chew and release its flavor. Taste it. We had to move beyond, “Wow, that’s nice!”, into a considered evaluation of what was on the fork. And it prompted Food Network-worthy discussion about what we like about Middle Eastern cuisine (fresh produce, judicious use of spices) and what we didn’t like – but ate anyhow – because, well, it was there (rice, bread, rice, potatoes, sugar, more rice).

Mindful eating is easier said than done in this region where food sharing is as laden with as many meanings as calories. Weak protests of food allergies or stomach bugs only get you so far. I found that a PC tack is to swap that slab of knafeh or hunk of mansaf mutton for a single, small bite. Add an appreciative smile and energetic pat on your belly and maybe distract an aggressive hostess from pressing more food on you. And, chin(s) up, there is a way out: when surrounded by culinary traditions that don’t serve your own preferences, just refuse to be bullied into belly busting consumption.

So Lesson One is be mindful of what and why and how you eat. And when you eat, just eat. Drop the Kindle. Take out the earbuds. Push away from the monitor and sit at a proper table. You can find guidance on Pinterest, Google, and Facebook. Check out YouTube, where you can have rock-star Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh walk you through the process:

[youtube]https://youtu.be/uxE9g5iVf74[/youtube]

What’s next? As befits the first day of Ramadan, I will try fasting. Made simple as all the Amman bars and many of its restaurants shut for the month. Over 90% of my compatriots will be living food-free during daylight hours. I lack the stamina to stay awake through late night iftars to graze. Dare I say this will be a ‘piece of cake’?

Green Prophet has written about fasting, a dietary tack once a favorite of ancient prophets that has strong support from contemporary science, with notable aficionados in between. Did you know that American author Upton Sinclair was a fasting fan?

His 1906 novel The Jungle exposed unsanitary and inhumane conditions in the nascent Big Food business (specifically the Chicago meatpacking industry). Sinclair was keen on alternative health practices, preferring a predominantly vegetarian diet based largely on raw food. In fact, he wrote another bestseller in 1911 titled The Fasting Cure. The unusual little book is available as a free read (link here).

“I had taken several fasts of ten or twelve days’ duration, with the result of a complete making over of my health”, said the prolific writer. Um, he also believed in ghosts.

So here goes (literally) nothing.

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NASA sees Mideast holiday lights from space

Brian Nitz — Sun, 21 Dec 2014 23:23:57 +0000

NASA scientists are using the Suomi NPP satellite to photograph the earth at night. They are studying natural phenomenon as well as light pollution. They found that manmade lights shine noticeably brighter during the holidays of Ramadan, Christmas and New Year.

Some Middle Eastern cities shone more than 50% brighter during Ramadan. Find out how ancient religious celebrations led to traditions of holiday glare.

NASA scientists and associates used a sophisticated computer algorithm to compare man-made lights during holidays to man-made lights at other times of the year.

They compensated for clouds, dust and other weather phenomena which might have impacted the results. They also ignored increases in brightness from areas with snow cover because snow reflects and increases the amount of manmade illumination which escapes into space.

The scientists were surprised that holiday lights are visible from space.

Hanukkah Holiday Light

The Jewish celebration of Hanukkah is sometimes called the festival of lights. It commemorates a Maccabee victory and a miracle of efficient lighting that took place in 165 BCE. A nine-branched Hanukkah menorah lamp is part of this traditional celebration. The menorah’s candles are lit in order to represent the miraculous extra days of light.

Electric menorahs are sometimes used for display purposes and to let others know about the Jewish faith, but under most circumstances, this mitzvah requires a true menorah which burns wax or oil as the original temple menorah would have.

So, with the exception of the green laser menorah projected onto a landfill in Ariel Sharon park near Tel Aviv, typical Hanukkah celebrations aren’t bright enough to be seen from space.

Christmas Holiday Light

Christmas celebrates the birth of Jesus of Nazareth in Bethlehem. To Christians, Jesus Christ is the messiah and the light of the world. But there is only a tenuous connection between core Christian beliefs and the traditional illuminated Christmas tree.

The ancient pagan practice of decorating an evergreen tree was adopted by devout Christians in Germany. Marriage and other family connections brought this tradition to Great Britain around the year 1800 and spread further when Queen Victoria married her German cousin. At the time, these Christmas trees were decorated with ornaments and occasionally with lit candles.

In December 1882, Edward H. Johnson demonstrated the first electric Christmas tree lights. This was only three years after his associate Thomas Edison demonstrated the first practical incandescent light bulb. These lights were seen as a publicity stunt of the fledgling Edison electric company and not immediately welcomed as a less flammable alternative to candles. Businesses began using them around the year 1900 but they were too expensive for average households until about 1930.

Electric Christmas lights went through several technology and style changes over the next few decades. This included compact fluorescent Christmas lights introduced in the 1940s, high voltage Christmas lights, low voltage “fairy light” incandescents and the recent introduction of red, yellow, green, blue, ultraviolet and finally white LEDs.

Ramadan Holiday Light

These decorative lights eventually spread beyond the western world and beyond the Christian holiday. Some neighborhoods hold competitions for the brightest, blinkiest, most eye-watering holiday light display. So it should surprise no one that lights such as these are seen from space:

The lights of the Muslim holiday of Ramadan can also be seen from space. In Saudi Arabia, outdoor lights were twice as bright during Ramadan than they are at other times of year. Some of this may be caused by decorative lights, and the fact that more people are outside after sunset when each daytime fast ends.

Photographs by NASA some rights reserved

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Jordan’s Tkiyet Um Ali Serves Up Big Eid Eats for All

Faisal O'Keefe — Tue, 08 Oct 2013 18:47:25 +0000

The smirky little ram gracing billboards across Amman, Jordan is the face of Tkiyet Um Ali, an organization launched in 2006 by Jordan’s Princess Haya Al-Hussein in memory of her mother, the late Queen Alia, who conceived this project to (literally) cater to the needy.

Tkiyet Um Ali is the first project of its kind in the Middle East. Inspired by an Islamic precept to eliminate economic inequality, the group provides food and humanitarian services to Jordan’s poor with particular emphasis on religious feasting. Focused fundraising takes place before the Muslim holiday Eid Al-Adha (enter the smiling ram).

Donations are collected year-round, but in the run-up to Big Eid, also called the Feast of the Sacrifice, Muslims wishing to forego personal animal sacrifice can make a fixed price donation to the NGO, fulfilling the requirement to provide meat to the poor.

Other groups collect money to purchase and distribute meat to the poorer neighborhoods, but Tkiyet Um Ali has modernized the ancient tradition. Donations can be made by SMS or phone call providing the benefit of anonymity to both the giver and the recipient. Muslims wishing to make zakāt (the obligatory practice of charitable giving) also donate throughout the year. Most support comes from individuals, corporate donations account for less than 10% of total revenues.

The enormous scale of operations results in economies that maximize purchasing power: this group taps into a global supply chain to meet their large scale demand. Animals are purchased from Australian ranchers, processed according to halal criteria and delivered frozen to Jordan for year-round distribution.

Tkiyet Um Ali provides over 400 hot daily meals at their Amman headquarters, each designed to provide 60% of an individual’s daily caloric requirement. They deliver customized food packages containing 22 different foods to at least 4,500 families each month. Nearly 250,000 meals are served annually, including iftar meals during the holy month of Ramadan and special meals during Eid Al Adha.

According to Director General Samer Balkar, there are currently 6,000 families registered with the organization, receiving monthly food parcels at a cost exceeding $700,000 a month.

Balkar said they aim to provide food parcels for 8,200 families by the end of 2013, and raise public awareness on the need to help the underprivileged.

Tkiyet Um Ali is a leading organization in combating hunger in Jordan. Check out their online clock (link here) to see how much time remains to make a Big Eid donation.

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The Christmas-izing of Ramadan and Eid

Faisal O'Keefe — Mon, 09 Sep 2013 15:57:51 +0000

Recognizing our likenesses even in superficial traditions can chip away at the sense of “otherness” that prevents connection. With Syria on the brink, will anyone dispute that the West and the Middle East need better connection?

Let me share some random observations after my third Ramadan in an Islamic country, not intended for provocation, but instead to highlight similarities between the Western world and a region whose culture is often painted in bogeyman colors.

Jordan’s emerged from its Ramadan coma: a month of iftar overeating that can cause hangovers rivaling any brought on by booze. The Muslim holy month is marked by daytime fasting and abstinence from simple pleasures, ostensibly to bring one closer to God through patience and resisting temptation.

Most Muslims use Ramadan as a time to focus on prayer and family. Jordan becomes a slower, gentler place for the duration. Reminiscent of the Catholic Advent of my childhood (the near-month run-up to Christmas), these seasons are intended to bring the faithful closer to the lives of their respective prophets, emulating austerity and generosity, a time to contemplate.

Somewhere in mid-twentieth century America, Christmas exploded from it’s religious shell (albeit one coated in localized, secular traditions) and became a full-throttle social whirl, with its muscular commercial underpinnings squeezing religiosity to a holiday footnote. Meatless Fridays and Sunday High Mass took a back seat to Macy’s sales, office holiday parties and professional tree decorators.

Is the same happening to Ramadan?

Glittery Ramadan decorations, rarely seen three years ago, now twinkle in apartment windows in most Amman neighborhoods. The displays could compete with the most decked-out American suburbs, electrified crescent moons and colorful lanterns replacing reindeer and Santa.

Roadside tent-shops pop up weeks before Ramadan, hawking ornaments and lights, with peak sales happening just before Eid. Until recently, vendors were few and far between. This year they were everywhere.

“People like decorating their homes ahead of Ramadan. It adds to the special atmosphere of the month. I decorate the windows and the rooms,” shopper Elham Assaas told The Jordan Times. All her neighbors decorate their houses, “At night, the whole locality lights up. It’s a beautiful sight.”

Daily fasts break with evening iftars, increasingly lavish affairs which spiral upwards in cost in part due to genuine Arabic hospitality which insists on including extended family, neighbors, new friends and co-workers. My local friends hemorrhage savings to underwrite the month of communal feasting. Corporations and societies host catered feasts at swanky venues with live entertainment and luxurious giveaways.

Is this what The Prophet MPBOH intended?

Ramadan concludes with Eid al-Fitr, the “light at the end of the tunnel after a long and difficult month,” according to the Al Bawaba website. The faithful rise early and tuck into a modest breakfast before prayers. Everyone dresses in their best clothes (spending on holiday outfits soars during Ramadan, with shops running sales and special promotions).

Afterwards come visits to friends and relatives, where more food is served. Think Christmas dinner, but supersized. Gifts are also exchanged.

The world’s great religions all weave traditions of music, food, and gifting into their spiritual celebrations. Does the shifting emphasis from simple to splendiferous diminish underlying spirituality, or is amped up consumerism equally tainting all aspects of life?

What I’m observing here is that contemporary forces (urbanization, access to global markets, the never-changing aspiration of parents wanting to bring joy and privilege to the next generation) conspire to soften the edges of those things that set cultures apart, including our most sacred holidays.

Watching some of the surface trappings and traditions of Ramadan become interchangeable with those of modern Christmas makes me oddly hopeful. The late Andrew Masondo, national commissar of the African National Congress, once said “Understand the differences; act on the commonalities.”

Curse ubiquitous food chains and cookie-cutter mall couture, but this shared commercial schmaltz might be the grease to shift how we view one another. And a focus on on our samenesses, however trifling, is a solid beginning.

Images of Ramadan items from EidWay

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10 Green Gift Ideas for Eid al-Adha

Faisal O'Keefe — Tue, 27 Aug 2013 04:50:06 +0000

Want a jump up on impressing the hosts of upcoming Eid al-Adha parties? Conspicuous consumption is hard work in Jordan where I live. Product selections are slim, and tasking distant friends with doing the shopping requires gambling on Jordan Post, where parcels disappear like socks in the dryer. Internet retailers can be the answer, if you’re willing to pony up credit card info (a decidedly non-Jordanian habit, as locals operate on a largely cash-only basis). Firebox.com offers unique gift ideas that will tag you as the perfect guest.

Green Grass Flip-flops (pictured above) – A pair of comfy sandals lined with soft, realistic but totally fake grass are perfect for golfers, footballers, Irish ex-pats, and anyone in water-starved Amman needing a reminder of nature’s lushness. ($45)

BIKE SPOKELIT – Put safety first as you race to pre-dawn Fajr prayers with this wheel-mounted light. As you pedal, revolving wheels create a solid ring of light, ensuring maximum visibility. ($16)

AQUA ZINGER – Whip up homemade drinks free from unwanted additives. Load this up with your favorite fruits, add a splash of water, and its built-in blender creates tasty slushies or hot fruity drinks. It’s a perfect device for mixing mocktails. ($45)

Vapur Reflex Bottle – As much as I despise plastic bottles, I don’t use reusables because I don’t want to lug around the empties. This brilliant alternative stands up when it’s filled, but deflates when empty so you can roll it up and stash it in a pocket or backpack. Made from BPA-free plastic, it’s odor and stain resistant and dishwasher-safe. ($18)

GROW YOUR OWN PIZZA – Amp up your self-sufficiency and be one with nature by growing your own basil, peppers and tomatoes. Plop the prepared pots in a sunny spot, water them regularly and watch them grow. ($18)

OBSESSIVE CHEF’S BOARD – This chopping board guides perfect slicing and dicing with precise angles and measurements etched onto its surface. Made from durable and naturally antibacterial beechwood, it will encourage the obsessive-compulsive people in your life to put their neuroses to culinary use. ($36)

PAPER WATCH – This digital watch is a functional blank canvas for your wrist, clad in tear-proof paper fabric with a matching paper strap that can be personally decorated with a pen, marker or paintbrush. ($18)

RECYCLED TYVEK® WALLETS – Leave the leather on the animals and grab a billfold crafted from nearly-indestructible Tyvek® instead. These slim billfolds come in three styles, each with handy pockets and compartments. ($26)

SOLAR LANTERN – As with other solar lamps that Green Prophet’s covered, this one is linked to charity (for each lamp sold, its makers donate another to people in developing countries). Small solar panels endlessly recharge its lithium-ion battery. Lightweight, waterproof and portable, it’s a task light, flash light and diffused lantern all rolled into one. ($20)

PORTABLE LUNCH BOX – Keep your flavors distinct with the watertight locking seals on this update on the ancient Japanese Bento Box. It’s microwavable and dishwasher safe. Kiss those ziplock bags goodbye. ($23)

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Exodus from Syria Casts Dark Shadow on Muslim Holiday

Tafline Laylin — Sat, 10 Aug 2013 02:53:31 +0000

The day that the month long fast called Ramadan ends is normally a joyous occasion for Muslims across the globe, but this year, with nearly two million of their Syrian brothers and sisters stranded, and strife roaring through North Africa and the Levant, a deep shadow has grabbed hold of this year’s Eid al-Fitr holidays.

The Syrian travesty continues apace, tearing the country apart and displacing millions of people. Millions. After a hard winter and a harder summer, nearly two million Syrian refugees pass time in dreary camps throughout Jordan, Turkey, Iraq, Egypt and Lebanon.

In 2013, an influx of refugees crossed various borders seeking shelter, food, water, sympathy and help. And nearly three quarters of them are women and children who have lost their husbands, sons and brothers along the way, according to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR).

With so much suffering: lack of water, cramped quarters, substandard shelter, disease, rape, it’s hard to imagine how these innocent souls survive. UNHCR notes that five billion dollars is needed to help Syrians in and outside of the country – the biggest appeal for AID ever.

Syria’s wholesale destruction is fast becoming one of the worst humanitarian disasters in history, and for Muslims, who deeply value their clan, the ongoing conflict is a source of tremendous confusion, guilt, and sadness. Those emotions are shrouded in a sense of overwhelming hopelessness as the violence has now spilled over into Lebanon.

Aid workers are doing everything they can to make life for displaced Syrians as painless as possible. Innovative solutions for water and shelter are being tested, and aid organizations are campaigning tirelessly for help. But it isn’t enough.

There is never enough.

Ramadan is supposed to be a period for deep spiritual reflection that reinforces Muslim values. These are numerous, but charity is one of them. Remember the refugees during the holidays and please – lend a hand if you can.

Image of Syrian refugees, Shutterstock

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Palestine’s First Bike Lane in Jericho Brings Oldest City Up to Speed

Matthew Kalman — Thu, 01 Aug 2013 18:20:10 +0000

Biking enthusiasts in Palestine have welcomed the construction of the first cycle lane in the Palestinian territories on the main road leading from Jericho to Jerusalem.

The 1,200-metre two-way cycle lane on the west side of Jerusalem Street in Jericho was completed in July at a cost of 179,000 euros and will be formally opened after the end of Ramadan.

“The most pressing issue that bikers face here is they feel unsafe because they have to bike on the road with cars,” said Michael Awad of Bethlehem-based Bike Palestine, a group that organizes cycle tours of the area. “We think this is excellent.”

“Jericho is known as a favorite place for bikes. We’ll be using this lane on Jerusalem Street because on our tour we leave Jericho that way and bike to Nebi Musa, so it’s on our route,” Awad said.

“We have been pressing for cycle lanes, especially in areas where tourists can also use them,” he said. “We would like to create a bike tour in Bethlehem, so people can hire a bike after they come through the checkpoint and tour Bethlehem and the area. That would also be good in Jericho.”

The new lane runs from the Aqbat Jaber refugee camp opposite the Intercontinental Hotel, home to some 7,000 people, to the Hisham bin Abdul Malek Secondary School close to Jericho city center.

The schools in the refugee camp only serve younger children, so secondary school students have to make the trip into town every day. The long, straight, road encourages bad driving habits and there have been several fatal accidents along the route.

“This road that leads from downtown to Aqbat Jaber camp was very dangerous. Many accidents happened there and many people were killed, so the municipality has been looking for donors to improve the road for some time,” said Emad Barahmeh, a city councillor in charge of trade investment, health and the environment.

The unique topography of Jericho, at the bottom of the Jordan Valley-Dead Sea trench, makes it not only the lowest and oldest continually inhabited city on earth but also one of the flattest. With a built up area of just 25 square kilometers, the city is eminently suited to biking.

“People here have been used to being on bicycles for a long time,” said Barahmeh.

The new cycle lane was planned by an engineering consultancy in Nablus and overseen by Samar Zaina, an engineer trained at Birzeit University who is in charge of planning for the Jericho municipality.

Zaina said the idea of a cycle lane had been discussed by the municipality for 15 years. In the interim, she had visited many foreign cities and studied how the lanes there operated. A grant from the Municipal Development and Lending Fund financed by foreign donor countries made it possible to build this first module.

“There are a lot of different designs in the different countries. Each one depends on the road itself,” said Zaina.

“Lots of young people use bicycles in this area because there are schools there,” she said. “It’s dangerous to have people using bicycles there without having a cycle lane for the people to ride on.”

She said she had recommended that the municipality and the police provide training for drivers and cyclists after the official opening so local people will know how to use the new facility.

“This is a first experiment for us. We don’t even have regulations for it yet. We need to develop awareness about safety and how to use it,” she said.

But some foreign donors say this first cycle lane may also be Palestine’s last.

“We are very disappointed with these small projects that have been implemented by the Municipal Development and Lending Fund,” said Jacky Amprou, a project officer at the Agence Francaise de Developpement in East Jerusalem. “We are hoping that in future the fund will finance more integrated projects that will have a bigger impact in terms of urban development.”

Matthew Kalman is a foreign correspondent based in Jerusalem. He blogs at http://matthewkalman.blogspot.co.il/. His most recent books are PSYCHOBIBI and THE MURDER OF YASSER ARAFAT.

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