Eid al-Fitr in Yemen...a joy stolen by prisons and graves

The great Yemeni poet Abdullah Al-Bardouni looked with insight at the tragic reality of his country across generations past and future. He wrote a poem considered among the most honest, depicting the Eid and its conditions. He began it with: “They say, ‘You came, so what happened? What was revealed and what happened?’ You see songs as the new dawn, so what useful new thing do you see? The houses, the prisons, the graves increase/So has the earth’s surface increased by an inch?”

Most Yemeni families are suffering from deteriorating living conditions that have robbed them of a large part of the joy of Eid al-Fitr. However, the tragedy lies with the families who have lost loved ones in the war, and even more tragic are those who miss their sons imprisoned in prisons, awaiting their release and reunion with their families, thus ending their bitter years in prison. This bitter reality has led to the demise of many of the Eid rituals and social customs that distinguish the holiday in Yemen, as an occasion for family reunions and reunions after periods of absence.

“The war made me and my family lose the meaning of Eid after my father was martyred,” Wissam Mubarak, 16, told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed. “Hundreds of thousands of families are experiencing this situation. When I was six years old, the war reached my village in the Taiz countryside. I remember wearing my new clothes on Eid day, but I couldn’t leave the house because of the bombing that the Houthi militia was carrying out on our village. Today, I am a young man, and the war is still reaping the lives of Yemenis and sowing eternal sadness within more families, doubling the number of orphaned children and bereaved women.”

Sarah Al-Abbasi told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, "My husband is a soldier in the National Army in Marib, and we haven't heard anything from him for about five years. It's said that he's a prisoner of the Houthis. We certainly don't know what holiday will be in his absence. Our true holiday is when he returns home."

The deteriorating economic conditions resulting from the ten-year-old war in Yemen have transformed Eid from a time of joy into an additional burden, adding to the growing woes of Yemenis, especially as the majority of families are no longer able to meet even the most basic requirements for the holiday.

Ghassan Al-Qadi, a 42-year-old employee, told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed: “Living conditions have made citizens fear the coming of Eid due to the financial obligations that accompany the celebration of its rituals. It requires providing clothing that has become very expensive, especially in light of the lack of financial income, as well as a sum of money called “mu’awda” or “asb” to be distributed among relatives and kin, especially women and children, during Eid visits and greeting them. In addition, Eid used to be an opportunity for families to return from the cities to the villages, and this has become very difficult due to the doubling of travel costs.”

He continues: “Yemenis today are helpless in the face of the many and costly obligations of Eid, so they try to preserve as much as possible what remains of the social rituals. For example, some people are content with visiting relatives without offering gifts or palm leaves, and others are content with clothing only for young children, not adults over 15 years old. Many families living in cities that used to travel annually to villages during Eid are now content with making a visit every five years, and some of them have not visited their villages since the beginning of the war due to the pressure of lack of financial means.”

The new reality of Eid makes Yemenis yearn for the atmosphere of the past, when the country enjoyed security and peace, and Eid had its meaning as a social and religious occasion that brought joy to the hearts of adults and children alike.

"There are no longer specific preparations for Eid, such as making sweets or decorating the house," Taymour Al-Azani, also a poet, told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed. "We simply exchange greetings with family and friends virtually via WhatsApp. Eid used to be a source of joy and happiness for us, and an important opportunity to meet our distant relatives and friends. But this year, it comes to us again in the shadow of a hijacked state and a stolen joy that we no longer see. We don't see anything around us that indicates Eid except the time zone."

“The holidays have disappeared because the living conditions have made citizens concerned about providing a living, to the point that we are unable to clothe the children,” Saida Mahyoub, 58, a housewife, told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed. “Before the war, holidays were a joy for young and old, and the situation was comfortable. We used to buy Eid clothes for young and old at the end of Shaaban. Women used to buy traditional and heritage clothes, prepare henna, perfumes, and incense, as well as Eid gifts of raisins, almonds, pistachios, and chocolate, and prepare gifts for the children and exchange visits with relatives. But now, nothing remains of Eid except the name, and as the popular proverb says: Eid is the Eid of well-being, and praise be to God in all circumstances.”

Abdo Al-Jaradi, a bus driver, also spoke to Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, saying: “For years, Eid has ceased to symbolize any form of joy. Its religious symbolism remains, nothing more. Personally, I refrained from buying any new clothes or Eid decorations, while in these harsh conditions, I tried to provide my children with a few clothes and pretend to be happy so that they would not feel the burden of war on our shoulders, and to give them moments to celebrate away from the harsh reality around us. We have lost Eid as a symbol and an occasion for celebration, joy, and exchanging visits. All that remains is the name.”

“We prepare for Eid as usual by preparing clothes, gifts, and cakes, and we take advantage of its rituals to spread joy despite the war,” university student Zainab Makki told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed. “Eid has been difficult in recent years due to the war, but we are trying to live with the reality and hold on to the feeling of joy despite everything. We hope that Eid al-Fitr this year will bring joy and mark a new beginning, as we have lost the feeling of complete peace of mind, as well as the family gatherings that used to take place during previous holidays.”

Artist Khater Abdullah told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed: "Eid is no longer what it used to be due to the war. Given the difficult economic situation this year, we miss many rituals, most notably returning to the village with our families, buying gifts for our families, especially raisins, almonds, and perfumes, and participating in the Eid prayer at the Eid prayer ground, where villagers of all ages gather in their new clothes to pray in a spiritual and social atmosphere."

He adds: "In the past, Eid was a great opportunity to hold weddings because families returned from the cities to the villages, as it was an opportunity for social gatherings. A single village would host between five and 10 weddings."

Retaj Mahboub, 12, told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed: "On Eid, I just play with my brothers and relatives. We can no longer go to play in parks or visit gardens because of the high cost of living and the war. The best thing about Eid is when my maternal and paternal uncles visit us at home and give me a sum of money that makes me happy."

Al-Araby Al-Jadeed