Holy month of Ramadan begins with new moon Sunday night
The holy month of Ramadan began on Sunday evening with the sighting of the new moon.
The annual tradition calls for dawn to dusk fasting, prayer, charity and nighttime feasts.
“Ramadan is the best opportunity to work on yourself, on your heart, to be a better person,” said Imam Jamal Hammoud of the Akram Jomaa Islamic Centre in Calgary.
But as Muslims honour the call to faith, they also worry about the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip.
The death toll continues to rise there as requests for a cease-fire during Ramadan were denied.
Imam Hammoud says Ramadan focuses the mind on spiritual matters, but also fosters empathy for those who are suffering.
“More than one million people in Gaza are starving, dying out of starvation,” he said. “So we hope when the Muslim person fasts, remember these people, they can help, they can support.
"We hope during Ramadan can increase the amount of help.”
Ramadan greetings were given today by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith in press releases.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Prince William and Kate release photo of daughter Charlotte to mark ninth birthday
Prince William and his wife Kate released a picture of their daughter Charlotte to mark the princess's ninth birthday on Thursday.
Weight-loss drug Wegovy available in Canada starting May 6
The makers of Ozempic say their weight-loss drug Wegovy will be available to patients in Canada starting Monday.
Five human skeletons, missing hands and feet, found outside house of Nazi leader Hermann Goring
Archeologists have unearthed the skeletons of five people, missing their hands and feet, at a former Nazi military base in Poland.
NEW A mother's hopes to free her son from a Syrian prison is revitalized by a new human rights report
Just days before the seventh anniversary of the day Jack Letts was thrown in prison with thousands of suspected ISIS fighters, his mother, Sally Lane, delivered a small stack of envelopes to the headquarters of Global Affairs Canada in Ottawa.
NEW Companies letting customers opt out of Mother's Day ads
In an effort to balance the profitability of Mother's Day with the pain it causes some people, some brands are offering customers the choice to opt out of Mother's Day email advertising.
DEVELOPING Police begin removing barricades at a pro-Palestinian demonstrators' encampment at UCLA
Police removed barricades and began dismantling a pro-Palestinian demonstrators’ fortified encampment early Thursday at the UCLA campus after hundreds of protesters defied police orders to leave, about 24 hours after counter-protesters attacked a tent encampment on the campus.
Dental care program accepting claims for 1 million seniors
Citizens' Services Minister Terry Beech says 1,200 seniors have already visited a dentist and had their claims processed by the federal government's new dental care plan.
Concerns about Plexiglass prompt inspections at some Loblaws locations in Ottawa
Inspections are underway at more than one Loblaws location in Ottawa after complaints were filed about tall Plexiglass barriers.
NEW Facial reconstruction reveals what a 40-something Neanderthal woman may have looked like
Scientists studying a Neanderthal woman's remains have painstakingly pieced together her skull from 200 bone fragments to understand what she may have looked like.