Thousands of Muslims mark Eid in Toronto with heavy hearts

Thousands of people gathered at a Eid festival in Toronto on Friday to celebrate the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, but an organizer says many people did so with heavy hearts.

Zubair Khan said Eid al-Fitr is a time to celebrate community and faith, but also it happened this year at a particularly fragile time as the war in the Middle East intensifies.

"In our tradition, our understanding is that our global community is like one body. And when any aspect of it is hurting, the rest of body feels that, is concerned about that and responds to that," said Khan, one of the masters of ceremonies of the MAC Eid Festival at the Enercare Centre at Exhibition Place.

"Even though it's a very ethnically diverse community and we're all the way here in Canada, our hearts, our thoughts, our prayers are very much with people suffering around the world and places in the world, such as Sudan, Gaza, the unfortunate situation in Lebanon, Iran, Afghanistan," he added.

"While it's a day of celebration, it's also a day for people to come together, to mourn together, to find strength, to find inspiration and to hold each other up and to show our strength and our pride as a community."

The Toronto event, one of the largest Eid festivals in the country, was organized by the Muslim Association of Canada (MAC), a charitable organization that says it educates and motivates Muslims in Canada "to put their faith into action" to benefit all.

Khan said the event featured congregational prayers, food, a kids' festival with carnival rides, pony rides and a petting zoo, a bazaar with vendors, and cultural performances.

At one mosque in Toronto, Eid was celebrated despite a number of violence incidents outside the mosque during Ramadan that have affected members of the community.

The Toronto Islamic Centre, on Yonge Street north of Bloor Street, said it has implemented a "buddy system" where volunteer security members accompany worshippers leaving the mosque after prayers within the surrounding area.

The security measure comes after an incident on March 16 that occurred while a family was leaving the mosque and walking home, the mosque said. One of the children in the family was assaulted by a person who allegedly made hateful and threatening remarks toward the family.

Toronto police said in an email Friday they were notified and are investigating the incident.

The investigation is being led by the hate crimes unit, police said.

Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow spoke at the MAC Eid Festival, saying it was the third such festival of the day that she attended.

"People's hearts are heavy because of the suffering far away but also here. Islamophobia, hate, being insulted because of your faith. And that's not who we are in Toronto. We are a city that is kind and caring," Chow said.