ISLAMABAD: The nation is observing Eid-ul-Azha, which is all about the spirit of sacrifice, with religious fervour today (Wednesday) by slaughtering animals in the name of Allah following the Sunnah of Prophet Hazrat Ibrahim (AS).
Meanwhile, parts of the Northern Areas, Afghan refugees in tribal areas and several districts of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), including parts of the provincial capital Peshawar, observed Eid on Tuesday.
The Afghan refugees offered Eid prayers at five open places in Peshawar city and especially prayed for the safety and security of Pakistan.
Eid prayers were also offered in Abbottabad, Mardan, Bannu and other districts of the KP besides Mohmand Agency, Khyber Agency and other tribal areas. Sacrificial animals were slaughtered in observance of the Sunnah of Hazrat Ibrahim (AS).
The people in Mohmand Agency observed Eid a day earlier as a symbol of Muslim unity as Saudi Arabia also observed Eid on Tuesday.
Local clerics from the Deobandi school of thought observed Eid with Saudi Arabia after the Taliban in 2008 urged locals to unite in religious matters. However, clerics belonging to the Barelvi school of thought decided to observe Eid with the rest of Pakistan.
Meanwhile, millions of Muslims in Saudi Arabia, Europe and the US celebrated Eid-ul-Azha on Tuesday. Over 1,500 Eid prayers congregations were held in Britain. The faithful also sacrificed animals after the Eid prayers.
The Arab world, including Gulf countries and Saudi Arabia as well as Pakistanis in the US and Europe celebrated Eid-ul-Azha on Tuesday.
Following the Sunnah of Hazrat Ibrahim (AS), Muslims living in other countries including Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Libya, the UAE and Afghanistan sacrificed animals after offering Eid prayers. The largest Eid congregation was held at Masjid-ul-Haram in Saudi Arabia.
Eid-ul-Azha was also celebrated in Syria. Syrians rushed to markets to buy clothes as well as to bundle up for winter amid complaints of exorbitant prices that had forced many to return home empty-handed.
Customers move from one shop to another in search of a cheaper price as the prices of clothes have shot up owing to sharp depreciation of the Syrian pound.
Majority of political and religious personalities, including federal and provincial ministers, will celebrate Eid-ul-Azha in their native towns, while former president Pervez Musharraf will celebrate Eid in jail.
President Mamnoon Hussain has celebrated Eid in Saudi Arabia, while Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif will celebrate it at Raiwind, Lahore along with his family.
Governor Punjab Chaudhry Sarwar, Chief Minister Mian Shahbaz Sharif and Speaker National Assembly Sardar Ayaz Sadiq will celebrate Eid in Lahore.
Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Syed Khurshid Shah, Governor Sindh Dr. Ishrat-ul-Ibad and Sindh Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah will be in Karachi on Eid, while former president Asif Ali Zardari and PPP Chairman Bilwal Bhutto will celebrate Eid in Dubai.
Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry will celebrate Eid in Islamabad, Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan in Murree, while Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Amir Munnawar Hassan will offer his Eid prayers in Mansoora, Lahore.
Chairman Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Imran Khan will celebrate Eid in Mianwali, Chairman Awami National Party (ANP) Afandyar Wali in Wali Bagh, Charsadda and Maulana Fazlur Rehman in Dera Ismail Khan (D.I. Khan).
Pakistan Muslim League (PML-Q) leaders Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain and Chaudhry Pervez Elahi will celebrate Eid in Gujrat.
