AROUND 900 people gathered at a Southampton mosque to celebrate Eid on Saturday.

After 30 days of fasting, worshippers came together at Medina Mosque to pray and greet each other before an afternoon of festivities.

Families exchanged gifts and indulged in tasty food to mark the end of Ramadan.

Rashid Brora, 59, Chairman of the Southampton Union Mosque trust told the Daily Echo: “These celebrations will last officially one day but most people will carry it on for a few days.

“People have everything you can think of in terms of food and spend time with relatives during the day.

“You literally go from one extreme to the other as you go practically a month with eating very little to suddenly eating more than you can manage!”

He added: “It’s a wonderful time, the children will be given gifts which for them is a little bit like Christmas, so there’s an awful lot going on and it’s shared with anyone and everyone that is around.”

Muslims celebrate Eid twice a year, as Rashid explains.

“There’s two Eids in effect and this is the larger one known as Eid al-Fitr which celebrates the ending of Ramadan.

Daily Echo:

“Muslims have a lunar year and we have to sight the moon in order to start fasting and then near enough 30 days later – the next new moon – you stop fasting and the next day indicates a new month.

“Muslims all over the world including those in Southampton have been fasting and attending prayers both in the day and evening. Over Ramadan, we have to abstain from food and drink – even water – from the beginning of dawn until after sunset, which in some cases can be up to 18 hours.

“That’s something that can be really difficult because it’s not just the hunger, it’s also the physical tiredness that goes alongside your normal working day.

“But ultimately, it’s about being fresh in your mind and being spiritually refreshed and reading the Qur’an which helps to increase your knowledge of the religion. It’s spiritual rejuvenation.”

The celebration of Eid brings the community together, as Rashid couldn’t be prouder to be from Southampton.

He said: “Southampton is a great city.

“The community in Southampton is very diverse and we all work together.

“While other places may have problems, I think you can say hand on heart Southampton is a place where everybody is welcome, and we all get along.

“It’s brilliant to be a part of that.”