President Sheikh Mohamed hosted an iftar banquet in Abu Dhabi on Friday in celebration of <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/mena/2023/03/24/muslims-mark-first-friday-prayers-of-ramadan/" target="_blank">Ramadan</a>. He welcomed a number of citizens and senior officials to the reception at Qasr Al Bateen. Attendees performed prayers to call for goodness, safety, security, progress and prosperity for the UAE and its people. The gathering was attended by a number of ministers and dignitaries, including Sheikh Saif bin Zayed, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior, Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Presidential Court and Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation. Worshippers gathered in <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/uae/2023/03/23/first-rashidun-caliph-mosque-opens-in-sharjah/">mosques</a> across the UAE on Thursday to mark the start of Ramadan. The <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/uae/ramadan/2023/02/20/ramadan-2023-when-date-prayer-times-faqs/">holiest month in the Islamic calendar</a>, <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/uae/ramadan/2023/03/21/saudi-arabia-ramadan-start-thursday/">Ramadan</a> is observed by more than 1.9 billion Muslims around the world. It is said to be the month the Quran was revealed to Prophet Mohammed. Ramadan is typically a time for reflection and spending time with loved ones. On Wednesday, <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/uae/ramadan/2023/03/22/president-sheikh-mohamed-sends-out-ramadan-greetings-to-leaders-across-the-arab-world/">Sheikh Mohamed</a> called for “peace and harmony” for people in the UAE and around the globe, in an uplifting Ramadan message. He wished for a “blessed month of reflection”. “As the holy month of Ramadan begins, I wish you all a blessed month of reflection and pray that God continues to grant peace and harmony to the people of the UAE and the world,” Sheikh Mohamed wrote on Twitter.
