To commemorate the end of Ramadan, teenage Muslims in a refugee camp in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo carry bags of rice, beans, and fish from tent to tent.
More than a million people have fled the North Kivu region since March 2022, when conflict erupted between M23 rebels and government soldiers. Hundreds of people have sought refuge from the rain in the Munigi camp, located on the grounds of a mosque west of Goma, in improvised tents covered with rugs or plastic sheets.
Maisara Abdu, a 26-year-old displaced Muslim woman, ceased celebrating Eid with her five children due to financial constraints. However, following last week’s food drive, things have changed. During the month of Ramadan, which is highlighted by the celebration of Eid, Muslims throughout the globe fast during daylight hours.
We prayed to God to perform a miracle for us. They’re feeding us as we wait for his will to be carried out. “Thank God, we’re happy,” she said.
Attacks by the Ugandan ADF rebel force, which is affiliated with the Islamic State group, have strained Christian-Muslim relations throughout the nation, particularly in the Congo’s northeast. People of both religions, however, cohabit harmoniously in the Munigi camp.
Abdu’s next-door neighbor, the Catholic Francine Mapendo, received the identical Eid gift.
We Christians have also benefited, thus we owe them a big debt of gratitude. She prayed to God to bless them with his grace.
