Arab regimes’ fears focus on Ramadan

Arab governments are bracing for increased tensions during the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan which began yesterday in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Kuwait, Qatar, Yemen and the United Arab Emirates.

“Throughout history, Ramadan has been the month of revolutions and victory,” said Abdullah al-Amadi, director of the Qatar-based Islamic website Islamonline.

“I think it will inspire the youths of the Arab Spring to complete their struggles against injustice and tyranny,” he said.

Mr Amadi said an escalation in the Arab struggle for democracy could come in the final 10 days of Ramadan, believed to be the holiest of the month.

The authorities in Syria fear the daily Taraweeh nightly prayers during Ramadan threaten to transform every day into Fridays, when people leave mosques after the weekly prayers and protest in their thousands in the streets.

Facebook group The Syrian Revolution 2011, a driving force of the protest movement wrote: “The regime is afraid of Ramadan and the Taraweeh prayers,” amid calls by Syrian cyber activists for protests every night until dawn.

In Libya, rebels locked for months in deadly battles with strongman Muammar Gaddafi regime are determined to continue their struggle despite abstaining from food and drink during daylight in the scorching heat of August.

“If it’s war and we’re tired, we’ll eat. But if we remain in a defensive position, we will fast. God is with us,” said Hatem al-Jadi, a 24-year-old fighter in the western desert hamlet of Gualish, south of Tripoli.

President Ali Abdullah Saleh of Yemen, where anti-regime protests erupted in January, is in Saudi Arabia after being wounded in an explosion but his regime still grips the reins of power as rifts ripple through the ranks of his opponents.

But protesters camped out at a square in the Yemeni capital Sanaa since February say they are determined to revive their movement during Ramadan.

“This will be the month of change, especially since Ali Abdullah Saleh is not in Yemen,” said Walid al-Omari, an activist from Yemen’s Youth Revolution group.

Mr Saleh was wounded in the blast at his palace compound on June 3, and was flown the next day for treatment in Riyadh where he is still convalescing.

Highlighting divisions among opposition members, a group of protesters on July 16 announced the creation of a 17-member “Presidential council” to run Yemen if Mr Saleh quits, a move that was not been well-received by other sections of the opposition.

Other Arab governments are adopting a “better safe than sorry” stance, making sure they closely monitor the prices of goods in Ramadan, which usually soar during the month, in order to keep their people happy.

Ramadan is the ninth month of the lunar Islamic calendar when Archangel Gabriel revealed the Koran – Islam’s holy book – to the Prophet Mohammed.

The exact dates of the start and the end of Ramadan depend on the sighting of the new moon as many Muslim countries reject using astronomical calculation for the Muslim lunar calendar.

If the new moon had been sighted on Saturday, the start of Ramadan would have been on Sunday.

Throughout the month devout Muslims must abstain from food, drink and sex from dawn until sunset when they break the fast with the Iftar meal.

The fast is one of the five pillars of Islam, along with the annual pilgrimage to Mecca which able Muslims should do once in a lifetime.

Sweltering temperatures in the Gulf Arab countries and the length of time between dawn and sunset will make Ramadan in August a trying ritual for Muslims this year.