Hundreds of Palestinians arrived for Iftar among the rubble of Rafah in southern Gaza on Saturday, during the first day of Ramadan. Palestinians in Gaza marked the first day of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan amid the rubble of their houses and concerns that the Israel-Hamas war could resume.

Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu attended an Iftar event with the ambassadors of 20 OIC member countries in Bucharest.

At that point there were still a few hours left before the first phase of the ceasefire was due to end, and before Netanyahu announced the blocking of humanitarian aid, and so the Muslim cleric Mufid Al Hasanat expressed his joy in front of the cameras for a Ramadan without the constant bombings and hardships of the previous one.

Israel has cut off the entry of all food and other goods into Gaza in an echo of the siege it imposed in the earliest days of its war with Hamas.

Muslims in the Middle East are observing the holy month of Ramadan under exceptional circumstances. Ramadan is seen as a time of religious reflection and worship, charity, and community, as they fast from sunrise until sunset.

Palestinians sit at a large table surrounded by the rubble of destroyed homes and buildings as they gather for iftar, the fast-breaking meal, on the first day of Ramadan in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, Saturday, March 1, 2025. AP/PTI

For Palestinians observing Ramadan in Gaza, the Muslim holy month started this year under a fragile ceasefire agreement that paused more than 15 months of the Israel-Hamas war.

Israeli fire has killed at least two people in Rafah and injured three others in Khan Younis in the south of Gaza, raising fear among Palestinians that the ceasefire could collapse altogether after Israel imposed a total blockade on the shattered enclave.

Worshippers perform a night prayer called 'Tarawih' during the eve of the first day of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan in Turkey, at the Hagia Sophia mosque in Istanbul, Turkey, Friday, Feb. 28, 2025.