2000 Ingush families receive help for Eid al-Adha

The celebrations of Eid al-Adha (Kurban Bayram) in Ingushetia cover 98% of local population, Yakhya Khadziev, the Head of the Department for Religious Matters under the Head of the Republic of Ingushetia (RI), told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that today Muslims are celebrating the Eid al-Adha. In Ingushetia, it is a day-off. In anticipation of the holiday, agricultural fairs were opened in the republic, where prices on foodstuffs and sacrificial animals are lower than the usual marketplace ones.

Eid al-Adha is the Feast of the Sacrifice, which is celebrated 70 days after the holiday of Eid al-Fitr and which falls on the 10th day of the holy month of Dhu al-Hijjah. The feast is celebrated during three days and marks the end of the pilgrimage to Mecca.

"As a rule, the sacrifice ritual takes place after the Eid prayer in the morning: people kill a sacrificial ram, invite their relatives, friends, neighbours, and treat them," said Yakhya Khadziev, adding that "this year, farmers and entrepreneurs sell rams at the lowest price, so that people could afford a ritual sacrifice. Those, who have no money for that, received material help from local businessmen and municipal authorities."

The heads of rural municipalities have pre-compiled lists of poor and needy families, and coordinated them with Imams of local mosques. According to Mr Khadziev, there are 2000 such families in the RI.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.