British ‘Ramadan runners’ raise funds for food poverty charity
April 15, 2022, 4:11 am

British ‘Ramadan runners’ raise funds for food poverty charity

Half of Muslims living in the UK will struggle to feed their families during Ramadan (File photo: Pixabay)

The Arab News reported, Buckinghamshire’s “Ramadan runners” have so far raised more than £1,800 ($2,360) for a food poverty charity by cycling, running, or walking 5 km everyday during Ramadan.

Otherwise known as The Chiltern Champions, the group are raising the funds for The Big Community takeaway, which offers those in need a two-course meal in the county, with 2022 marking the second year they have participated in the event.

Group spokesperson, Javad Malik, told the BBC: “We’re doing it partly because during Ramadan we typically challenge ourselves spiritually.

“We do extra charitable deeds. It’s what we call the month of mercy, we hope God shows us mercy and as a result we show other people mercy.”

The Chiltern Champions are raising funds for The Big Community takeaway which offers those in need a two-course meal in the county (File photo: Arab News via Javad Malik)

Malik added that the runners were exhausted but remained motivated by their “fantastic cause.”

According to Malik, there has been a notable increase in the number of people claiming food parcels in the area he is from, Chesham, and it was this that inspired the group.

Muslims will observe holy month of Ramadan twice in the year 2030

Contending that running 5 km every day of Ramadan “would be asking a lot,” he noted that he and a friend, who together started the challenge last year, both ran their fastest 10 km during Ramadan.

He continued: “Something amazing does happen when you’re fasting, (but) we’re just taking it easy and not going mad."

Charities warn half of British Muslims will struggle to feed their families during Ramadan

“The timings of all of this are really important. We run about an hour before Iftar, when we can actually break our fast and eat but not being able to take liquids for 14 hours before is a bit much.”

Source: arabnews

WHO: Number of confirmed COVID cases worldwide surpasses 500 million Syrian immigrant Zack Tahhan helps capture New York subway shooting suspect

Upon arriving to participate in the summit of the European Political Community, which includes around forty heads of state in Budapest, he said, "I look forward to sitting with the elected U.S. president and seeing how we will collectively ensure we meet challenges, including the threats from Russia and North Korea." He also noted that the strengthening of ties between Russia and North Korea poses a threat to the United States as well, according to reports from Agence France-Presse.

Before Trump's victory, Rutte expressed confidence that a united Washington would remain part of the defensive alliance, even if Trump became the 47th president of the United States. In an interview with German public broadcaster ZDF last Monday night, he stated that both Republicans and Democrats understand that NATO serves not only the security of Europe but also that of America. He added that both candidates are aware that the security of the United States is closely tied to NATO.

On Wednesday, NATO congratulated Trump on his victory but did not address the Ukrainian issue.

It is noteworthy that the relationship between the elected U.S. president and the defense alliance was not the best during his first term in the White House. Trump criticized NATO member states multiple times and even hinted at withdrawing from the alliance unless they increased their financial contributions.

Additionally, the issue of the Russian-Ukrainian war is one of the matters that complicate relations between the two sides, especially since Trump has repeatedly stated that he can end this ongoing conflict, which began in 2022, quickly. He implied that he had a peace plan between Kyiv and Moscow, while his vice president, JD Vance, revealed aspects of that plan, which stipulated Ukraine's commitment not to join NATO, thereby sending reassuring signals to the Russians.

Furthermore, many NATO member states in Europe fear that Trump might halt military aid to Ukraine after he previously criticized the U.S. for pouring funds into supporting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.