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(KSL News) -- Today begins the holiest month of the year in Islam. Utah Muslims are preparing to begin both their fasting and prayer services for Ramadan.
Ramadan is a 29 or 30 day observance. It commemorates the period when the Muslim holy book, the Quran, was revealed to the Prophet Mohammad 14-hundred years ago.
This will mark the first Ramadan in Iraq since Saddam Hussein was ousted. Coalition forces have decided to lift the nighttime curfew in Baghdad for the first time since they captured the city six months ago.
Shopping has been brisk there as residents stocked up on supplies. Muslims abstain from food, water, smoking and intimacy during daylight hours.
In East Jerusalem, security is very tight as Muslims hung decorations in the streets to mark the month. There are celebrations following evening prayers and a breaking of the fast with an evening meal.
