CAIRO — Life is no longer the same for cattle trader Bahaa Mahmud. When the Islamic holy month of Ramadan approached in the previous years, Mahmud put together large amounts of food in preparation for his charity iftars —the evening meal following a day of fasting from sunrise to sunset—.
Mahmud would erect a tent outside his shop in Giza province, place dozens of chairs around the tables inside the tent lit with colorful lights and wait for the poor to arrive and break their fast.