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CAMP LEATHERNECK, Afghanistan – Eid-Ul-Adha, a three-day Muslim celebration called “festival of sacrifice” or “festival of feast” began this morning here with coalition forces and Muslims observing the holiday together.
Muslims celebrate Eid-Ul-Adha to remember the willingness of Prophet Abraham to sacrifice his son, Ishmael, as an act of obedience to God.
A few traditions associated with Eid include: sacrificing animals as did the Prophet Abraham, purchasing of new clothes for the festival and a gathering of friends and family together for a feast.
“This was a celebration of Eid, which was held by the Afghan community here in our area,” said Wali, a cultural advisor. “This is very important for us from the religious perspective and also it is a national holiday in Afghanistan.”
Prior to coalition forces arriving, the Taliban regime maintained many restrictions on the Afghan way of life including openly gathering for festivals just like this one.
Wali states that only a few months ago, the Taliban were still controlling many areas within Afghanistan, but now with the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan gaining more power, Afghan national flags are seen flying in those places once controlled by the Taliban. Wali says that these are positive signs.
Continually working alongside GIRoA, coalition forces are strengthening GIRoA’s capabilities in maintaining a legitimate government without Taliban influence, and legitimize the government in the eyes of the Afghans.
“This is one of the beauties of this Eid because gradually GIRoA is gaining more power and gaining control of many areas,” said Wali.
Wali says that coalition force support has partly made this possible, and is honored to have many coalition force members in attendance to celebrate this holiday.
“I’m pleased to say today that we don’t just have our Afghan community members here we have many people from ISAF and other nationalities,” said Wali. “This will be kind of a remarkable history or moment for us because we got together from many countries and we celebrated shoulder-to-shoulder and side-by-side.”
The coalition force members in attendance work hand-in-hand with the Afghans here on a daily basis and were grateful to be invited to the Afghans’ festival.
“It is my honor and privilege to be here to help celebrate this most important holiday, and I have brought [some] important people in order to show our respect not only for our Muslim partners but for the religion as a whole,” said Maj. Gen. Richard P. Mills, commander of Regional Command Southwest.
Mills also explained how many of the biblical teachings that coalition forces follow are the same teachings followed by the Afghans.
Not only were coalition forces in attendance to share in the festival, but a few service members participated as well.
Gunnery Sgt. Flora Burboa, 32, from Fallbrook, Calif., dressed in traditional Afghan clothing for the ceremony. She did this as a show of respect for her Afghan counterparts.
“I came to learn the traditions and to be a part of the [festival] with my Afghan partners,” said Burboa, RC (SW) linguist manager. “I think it’s important that we are able to participate in events like this, and get to see what the Afghan culture is about, and to respect our Afghan partners.”
Also in full Afghan dress was Master Sgt. Leon Ransom, 1st Radio Battalion linguist manager, from Portland, Ore.
Ransom also wanted to show his respect for the Afghan culture and acknowledge the hard work his linguists do for him.
“I respect their culture and I am willing to take the time out of my day and get dressed up in the Afghan traditional clothing,” said Ransom, 35. “They see that I’m showing interest in something that is very important to them, and by doing so it creates a better relationship between us and the Afghans.”
Ransom says there is an intangible bond between himself and his Afghan brothers, and if you take an interest in the Afghans culture and history it goes a long way. He added if you show curiosity and appreciation toward Afghans, “it’s a respect thing that you can’t really quantify.”
| Date Taken: | 11.16.2010 |
| Date Posted: | 11.17.2010 01:49 |
| Story ID: | 60293 |
| Location: | CAMP LEATHERNECK, AF |
| Web Views: | 146 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
This work, Eid-Ul-Adha celebrated aboard Leatherneck, by Sgt Shawn Coolman, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
