prijava
SARAJEVO, May 7 (FENA) - Despite the new conditions caused by the coronavirus outbreak, Iranian people, along with other Muslims around the world and in Bosnia and Herzegovina, have observed the month of Ramadan in joy. Many collective programs are canceled or held with restrictive measures respecting health protocols. Programs such as Laylat al-Qadr night and taking part in the Quran recitation, a favorite tradition of all Muslims, are held with the limited number of people and in compliance with the recommendations of the National Headquarters, the Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran to Bosnia and Herzegovina Gholamreza Alimohammad Ghelichkhan told FENA.
Speaking about the way Ramadan was observed in Iran during the pandemic, Ambassador Ghelichkhan points out that many religious programs in Iran this year were held online, which was very well accepted. The citizens of Iran during Ramadan carry out a wide range of activities to help those in need.
Some customs in the holy month for Muslims are also specific.
“People in Iran usually start iftar (the evening meal with which Muslims end their daily Ramadan fast at sunset) with dates, warm water or milk, and iftar in Iran usually includes dates, bread, Āš (thick soup), tea, greens, saffron rice pudding (Sholeh Zard), sherbet and special sweets called Zolbia and Bamieh. One of the customs that flourished in Iran in the past and which is still cherished today is that families gather to break their fast together. The meal is taken just after the call to the prayer, which is around sunset. Before the coronavirus pandemic, people would usually visit each other after iftar and sometimes sit together until sahur (the meal consumed early in the morning before fasting), however, this year these gatherings were not held in accordance with health regulations, and families used social networks to meet and talk to each other,” the Ambassador points out.
Iran is one of the countries, according to Ambassador Ghelichkhan, on the first line of the fight against coronavirus, and it has achieved great successes and progress in that regard. From the very beginning of the pandemic in Iran, medical studies for the production of coronavirus vaccine began, and many companies were engaged in this issue, which resulted in clinical trials of some of these vaccines.
“The Pasteur Institute of Iran conducted the first and second phases of the joint vaccine with Cuba in Cuba, and the first human trial of the "CovIran" vaccine was conducted in January 2021. The Fakhra vaccine has also entered the human testing phase by testing volunteers in the Iranian Ministry of Defense, and a third vaccine called Barakat is in the testing phase. To our satisfaction, good test results have been achieved so far, and we hope that we will soon enter the phase of mass production of vaccines,” he said.
During Ramadan, Iranians celebrate Quds Day in solidarity with the Palestinian people. Fortunately, the Ambassador points out, Quds Day is recognized and celebrated in many countries today, and in fact this day has become "a symbol of unity and will of the Islamic ummah against the crimes of the Israeli regime in Palestine and Gaza, and God willing, it will last until the day when the Palestinian people exercise their legitimate rights. "
At the end of the conversation with FENA, on behalf of the government and people of Iran, he congratulated all Muslims in Bosnia and Herzegovina on the occasion of Eid al-Fitr and expressed hope that Ramadan will be a month of peace, a month of friendship, a month of kindness and blessings and a month of fulfillment.
“I hope that we will soon witness the end of coronavirus pandemic in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iran and around the world. I am also glad that in recent years, delicious Iranian dates have found their place on iftar tables of BiH Muslims,” says the Ambassador of IR Iran to BiH Gholamreza Alimohammad Ghelichkhan.
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