Muslims, Jews, Christians gather for iftar in New York

By Mucahit Oktay

NEW YORK (AA) - Representatives from Muslim, Christian, and Jewish communities came together for an iftar, or fast-breaking meal, on Wednesday in New York.

The iftar meeting, which was held at the Turkevi Center, or Turkish House, was hosted by the New York consulate general with the support of the Turkish Communications Directorate.

Türkiye's envoy to the UN, Sedat Onal, said he is happy to gather people of different beliefs under the roof of the Turkevi.

“Ramadan is a time for Muslims to contemplate and pray to strengthen all kinds of communities, but it is also a time to share and empathize with those less privileged,” Onal said.

Reyhan Ozgur, Turkish consul general in New York, said this iftar is proof of the friendship that has developed among the believers of the three major religions.

“We welcomed Ramadan this year with the sadness of the earthquake that occurred on Feb. 6 in Kahramanmaras,” she said, adding that it was fascinating to see the empathy and solidarity shown by people from different backgrounds for quake victims.

The twin earthquakes on Feb. 6 in southern Türkiye killed more than 50,000 people in the country.

The meeting was also attended by religious leaders, including High Representative for the UN Alliance of Civilizations Miguel Moratinos, President of the New York Board of Rabbis Joseph Elie Weinstock and Vice President Joseph Potasnik, Archbishop Elpidophoros of America, and Imam Shamsi Ali.

*Writing by Gozde Bayar