Muslims in Harford County celebrated the end of the holy month of Ramadan with a prayer ceremony Tuesday morning at the Bel Air Reckord Armory.
As more than a billion Muslims worldwide celebrated completion of the month of Ramadan, Harford's Muslims assembled at the armory on Main Street to offer traditional Eid Prayers.
The Eid Prayers ceremony is a family event and is attended by men, women and children, explained Dr. Rehan Khan of Masjid Al-Falaah, Harford County's Muslim education center in Abingdon.
After the prayers congregants hug each other in the spirit of strengthening community bonding.
Several people of all ages attended Tuesday's ceremony, and most could be seen outside the armory afterward wearing their traditional clothing.
According to Kahn, the day is celebrated by exchanging gifts for children, distribution of sweets and visiting each other and sharing special meals prepared for Eid day.
The end of Ramadan is marked by congregational prayers called "Eid-ul-Fitr," or Feast of the Fast-Breaking, this year on Aug. 30.
Kahn said there are two major Muslim Holidays, Eid-ul-Fitr and Eid-ul-Adha. Second Eid is marked by sacrifice of animals and coincides with Hajj in Mecca. The Hajj is the annual worldwide pilgrimage to the holy city, one of the Five Pillars of Islam.
There are an estimated 100 Muslim families in Harford County, according to Kahn, and some seven million Muslims nationwide.