CAIRO - Orphans and parentless children in Cairo have a chance to eat their fill and get new clothes for free during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which began last Wednesday. Each Ramadan day, charitable societies offers free Iftar meals, which poor children and their parents can eat at dusk to signal the end of the fast. "Ramadan is a month of generosity," said Haj Abdul Hamid Elliwa, who runs a charitable society in Cairo, which donates thousands of meals every night to low-income people at "tables of mercy". These are charity food tables set out on pavements during Ramadan, so that the poor, or any passerby for that matter, can break their fast for free. Fajr el-Islam, a charitable society, plans to distribute new clothes and bulk supplies of food to the poor children during the whole month. While the rest of the year is fairly bleak for the orphan children, Haj Elliwa of Fajr el-Islam said that they had to find some happiness in Ramadan, which had piety and charity at its core. During Ramadan, he said, his association gets a seasonal boost as it receives gifts of food, money, toys and clothes from benevolent people. Charity is a cornerstone of Islam, and takes on a special importance in Ramadan,- he added. "Charity can be given to any Muslim in need. But orphans are mentioned in the hadith, or sayings of Prophet Mohamed, as particularly worthy recipients of charity," Haj Elliwa said.
