Eid al-Fitr, the Islamic feast that comes the first day after Ramadan, is typically a festive day in Cairo. Families get together or take to the streets, there is insanely loud music everywhere, impossibly energetic kids run around in new clothes while their incessant firecrackers create the illusion of a war zone, and the television is filled with the familiar lighthearted material and some new releases. And there were indeed many of these regular features of the occasion yesterday, but it was all visibly more limited than usual, much more subdued. The gloomy mood is a result of a politically tumultuous Ramadan and also the tense anticipation of one particular event: whether or not the government will try to break up Cairo's two major pro-Mohammed Morsi sit-ins at the Rabia al-Adawiya and Nahda squares.
The act is largely seen by people as either an impending disaster or a decisive action worthy of celebration. It has been my personal experience that the second camp is more prevalent in Cairo. And with the recent round of international diplomatic mediation efforts officially declared as having “ended” without any noticeable breakthroughs, and with the government and media rhetoric becoming noticeably sharper over the past few days, many theorize that the break-up effort will perhaps take place within days.
