Eid prayers

The first day of Eid al-Adha has witnessed a mass exodus from urban centers as vacationers flocked to coastal resorts to relish their holidays.

Citizens across Türkiye celebrated Eid al-Adha with prayers at major mosques, while leaders emphasized messages of peace and security.

Eid al-Adha celebrations began with prayers across Türkiye, as citizens gathered in mosques early in the morning.

Muslims gather to perform Eid al-Fitr prayer at the state-operated Mosque of Athens on Wednesday. Eid al-Fitr, a two or three-day festival, marks the end of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan and is one of the major holidays in Islam.

Muslims around the globe are celebrating Eid al-Fitr holiday this Wednesday, April 10, marking the conclusion of Ramadan, the islamic sacred month of fasting, prayer, and reflection.

In view of the preparations for Ramadan, the Yeni Mosque, an Ottoman monument in Thessaloniki which hosts various cultural activities, will for the first time be granted to Muslims for prayers during Eid al-Fitr on April 10. The Suleymaniye Mosque on Rhodes will also be given for Eid prayers. 

The decision was announced on Wednesday by the General Secretariat of Religious Affairs.

Türkiye marks the occasion of Eid al-Adha with conflicting emotions, as the 11 southern quake-hit provinces observe a somber Eid with quake survivors visiting the graves of their loved ones to pay their respects.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has strongly condemned the burning of the Muslim holy book the Quran in Sweden on June 28, further clouding the Nordic nation's chances of quickly joining NATO.

"We will not bow to the politics of provocation and threat. We will show our opposition against Islamophobia," Erdoğan said in a video message to celebrate Eid al-Adha of his party's members. 

Türkiye is immersed in the celebrations of Eid al-Adha, one of the most significant Muslim holidays that mark the end of the annual Hajj pilgrimage and hold immense religious importance, second only to Eid al-Fitr.

Deaths due to road accidents during the Eid al-Fitr holiday declined by 61 percent this year, Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu has said.

Even though the Eid holiday has already ended, and many people returned to their home towns, police units will remain on duty to conduct traffic inspections until the end of the week, the minister wrote on Twitter.

Azerbaijan has changed the country's Ramadan timetable with Iran to set it in compliance with Turkey this year, according to Turkish media reports.

"This is a first and an interesting development," said Ramin Sadık, an Azerbaijani historian.

Ramadan begins on April 2 with the first sahur, a meal before dawn, in Turkey and on April 3 in Iran.