They break the fast with iftar, an evening meal. Security across Iraq is better than it’s been in years, and this Ramadan brought a much smaller upswing in violence than previous ones did.

Ironically, Mosul residents had a Ramadan much like any other in 2014, when it started just days after IS had proclaimed its “caliphate” spanning tracts of Syria and Iraq.

Ramadan is a time to exercise charity and build community building and bonding. The sense of unity in Ramadan extends beyond families to the entire global Muslim community (Ummah).