Throughout the ages and different times, and in the face of technology and development, the month of Ramadan in Palestine retained special characteristics, customs and cultural manifestations that were passed down from generation to generation and remained immortal in the memory of history.
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Palestine begins to celebrate the month of Ramadan as soon as its crescent is sighted (whether in Palestine or in a neighboring country in accordance with the principle of unity of sights), where mosques rise the sound of supplications and invocations, announcing fasting. Muslims go to mosques to perform Tarawih prayers, and groups of children come out carrying lanterns, which are one of the old traditions in effect until now. Parents are keen to bring joy to their children by buying them lanterns.
Many of these Palestinian Ramadan customs that merge with the spirit of the age and adapt to it, preserving their characteristics and originality. Among these customs, the "head of the family" or his representative visits his female relatives and presents gifts on the occasion of the holy month, and this is often done after breakfast.
Like other countries, Palestine wakes up to the sound of “Al-Mosaharati” with his rituals accompanying his arrival, such as clicking the drum vigorously, praying to Allah Almighty, and the sweet Ramadan songs that awaken the sleepers and make them feel the beauty of this month and the importance of “Al-Mosharati” away from the multiple and different tones of mobile phones.
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After the withdrawal of the Israeli occupation army from the Palestinian territories, the Palestinians of Gaza hope to hear the cannon of breakfast away from the Israeli raids that have long disturbed their lives and disturbed the atmosphere of the holy Ramadan.
Despite the acquisition by Gaza of an antique bronze cannon installed on a symbolic platform erected by the municipality of Gaza City several years ago in the center of the city, as it used to fire sound bombs at breakfast time with the Maghrib call to prayer on all days of the month of Ramadan before the occupation of Gaza in 1967, it will still be unable to meet the desire of Gazans to revive a tradition that is remembered by the elderly in this poor city and the reason is: it is old and broken.
For decades, the Palestinian people have been distinguished from other peoples by certain types of food and drink during the month of Ramadan. Almost every region is characterized by a specific type of food, as Maqluba, Samakieh, Maftool, and Qadra invading the tables of Gaza, while on the throne of the breakfast tables in the West Bank is Musakhan and mansaf. The Palestinian breakfast tables are not devoid of spices and pickles of all kinds and different salads to open the appetite after fasting all day long.
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It should be noted here that the family breakfast exchange is a program that is not absent from the agenda of Palestinian families during the month of Ramadan. Housewives are masterful in preparing dishes and showing off the most delicious ones. Of course, dates of all shapes and sizes are the bride of the Palestinian breakfast table.
The popular markets of Gaza are adorned with manifestations of welcoming the month of fasting, especially among the sellers of sweets and "qatayef" pies, which hardly any Palestinian table is devoid of during Ramadan.
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Ramadan begins in Palestine from the city of Jerusalem, where the Al-Aqsa Mosque has become impossible to reach for those coming from outside the city. Military checkpoints, the deployment of occupation soldiers on the roads, and the closure of the city’s entrances to its Muslim visitors, all of this made the holy city isolated from the world.
