Security tight during Eid'l Adha prayers in Mindanao

MAGUINDANAO — Muslims in Mindanao performed the Eid’l Adha open-field congregational prayers on Friday in designated areas under tight security.

In the troubled Marawi City, worshipers gathered at the Lanao del Sur provincial capitol and at the campus of the Mindanao State University for the obligatory early morning worship rite.

The Eid’l Adha, or “feast of sacrifice,” is an important religious holiday in Islam, along with the Eid’l Fitr that marks the culmination of the Islamic Ramadhan fasting season.

Most clerics who led the Eid’l Adha prayers spoke on the importance of religious solidarity, fraternal love for all people regardless of religions and tribes and respect for life.

The Eid’l Adha is celebrated yearly to honor the biblical story, also found in the Qur’an, on the willingness of Ibrahim (Abraham) to offer as a sacrifice like a lamb his own son, Ismael, in a test of absolute loyalty to Allah.

Assemblyman Zia Alonto Adiong of the 24-seat Regional Assembly in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao said on Friday that worshipers in Marawi City performed their outdoor Eid’l Adha prayers in a somber mood.

“Of course we prayed for peace in Marawi and nearby towns affected by the conflict here,” said Adiong, spokesman of the Lanao del Sur provincial crisis management committee.

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Marawi City is the capital of Lanao del Sur that has 39 towns, among them Butig, from where the Maute terror group first emerged in 2014.

Gunshots in hostile areas in Marawi City, where Maute terrorists and soldiers are locked in a showdown since May 23, were heard while Maranaos prayed in groups under the morning sun.

In Maguindanao, hundreds of Muslims prayed at the parade ground of the Army’s Camp Siongco in Datu Odin Sinsuat town in the first district of the province.

Col. Markton Abo, civil-military relations officer of the Army’s 6th Infantry Division, said they hosted the Eid’l Adha prayer as part of their confidence-building measure in support of Malacañang’s peace overture with local Moro sectors.

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The commander of 6th ID, Major Gen. Arnel dela Vega, led soldiers in distributing food to worshipers while at Camp Siongco.

Abo and Dela Vega jointly organized the religious event in Camp Siongco, the largest Army facility in central Mindanao.

In a message, Dela Vega appealed to Muslims who prayed at Camp Siongco to continue helping push the government’s southern Mindanao peace process forward.

Among the worshipers, Dela Vega hosted were representatives from the Moro Islamic Liberation Front and the Moro National Liberation Front.

Both groups have separate peace accords with the national government.