A glimpse of Ramadan around the world

(RNS) A slideshow of Ramadan observed as a time of prayer and reflection, and typically large evening meals featuring specialty foods which vary across cultures.

A Palestinian girl reads the Quran during the holy fasting month of Ramadan at a mosque in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on June 8, 2016. Photo courtesy of REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa*Editors: This photo may only be republished with RNS-RAMADAN-WORLD, originally transmitted on June 9, 2016.

Sally Morrow

June 8, 2016 at 3:58 p.m. ET

(RNS) Muslims around the world are observing the holy month of Ramadan, during which many are fasting from sunup to sunset. The month commemorates the revelation of the Quran and is a time of prayer and reflection, and typically large evening meals featuring special foods, which vary across cultures. This slideshow offers a glimpse of the observances around the world.

Muslims gather around the Kaaba inside the Grand Mosque during the holy fasting month of Ramadan in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, on June 8, 2016. Photo courtesy of REUTERS/Faisal Al Nasser*Editors: This photo may only be republished with RNS-RAMADAN-WORLD, originally transmitted on June 9, 2016.

Iraqi people play a folk game called Al-siniya (tray) during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan in Kirkuk in Iraq, on June 7, 2016. REUTERS/Ako Rasheed *Editors: This photo may only be republished with RNS-RAMADAN-WORLD, originally transmitted on June 9, 2016.

A Muslim woman touches a wooden wall as she prays at the shrine of Sheikh Abdul Qadir Jeelani, a Sufi saint, during the holy fasting month of Ramadan in Srinagar, India, on June 7, 2016. Photo courtesy of Reuters/Danish Ismail

A man prepares vermicelli, a specialty eaten during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, at a factory in Kolkata, India, on June 8, 2016. Photo courtesy of REUTERS/Rupak De Chowdhuri *Editors: This photo may only be republished with RNS-RAMADAN-WORLD, originally transmitted on June 9, 2016.

A boy hangs strands of vermicelli, a specialty eaten during the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan, to dry at a factory in Allahabad, India, on June 7, 2016. Photo courtesy of REUTERS/Jitendra Prakash *Editors: This photo may only be republished with RNS-RAMADAN-WORLD, originally transmitted on June 9, 2016.

Palestinian women pray in front of the Dome of the Rock, at the compound known to Muslims as Noble Sanctuary and to Jews as the Temple Mount, in Jerusalem’s Old City during the holy month of Ramadan on June 7, 2016. Photo by Ammar Awad/Reuters

A vendor fills a bag with sweet bread on the first day of the holy fasting month of Ramadan in Tripoli, Lebanon on June 6, 2016. Photo courtesy of REUTERS/Omar Ibrahim *Editors: This photo may only be republished with RNS-RAMADAN-WORLD, originally transmitted on June 9, 2016.

A Syrian boy sells dates as others sit nearby on the first day of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan at the Harran refugee camp in Sanliurfa province, Turkey, on June 6, 2016. Photo courtesy of REUTERS/Umit Bektas *Editors: This photo may only be republished with RNS-RAMADAN-WORLD, originally transmitted on June 9, 2016.

A Muslim man prays before his iftar (breaking fast) meal on the first day of Ramadan in India, at the Jama Masjid (Grand Mosque) in the old quarters of Delhi, India, on June 7, 2016. Photo courtesy of Reuters/Adnan Abidi

The moon rises over the Jama Masjid (Grand Mosque) on the first day of Ramadan in India, in the old quarters of Delhi, India, on June 7, 2016. Photo courtesy of REUTERS/Adnan Abidi

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