Ramadan should not be an opportunity for monopolies and price hikes (President Kais Saied)

Ramadan should not be an opportunity for monopolies and price hikes," stressed President Kais Saied as he addressed the Tunisian people on the occasion of the holy month of Ramadan in a speech delivered on Sunday evening from the Zitouna mosque. The President called for a reduction in prices, a boycott of those who seek to speculate and monopolise, and help for the needy. He recalled the importance of fasting during the month of Ramadan, when the Holy Quran was revealed, noting that fasting is not only abstaining from food and drink, but also adhering to the goals of Islam by ensuring that behaviour and good deeds are upright. "He who does not forbid speaking and doing falsely, God has no need to forbid his eating and drinking," he said, adding, "O you who have believed, it is decreed for you to fast, as it was decreed for those before you, that you may become righteous. (Verse 183 of Surat Al-Baqarah). The essence of Islam is based on the concept of righteousness, "and righteousness has many meanings, in cluding refraining from sins, suspicions and excessive appetites," he said. The President quoted the words of God Almighty: "But whoever fears the position of his Lord and forbids the soul from indulgence, Paradise is the abode of the soul" (al-Nazu'at 40/41). He quoted the words of Abdullah bin Amr bin al-As when he was asked about Jihad and he replied, "Begin with yourself and strive for it, and begin with yourself and conquer it," for this month, glorified by Allah, is the month of self-struggle and self-purification. He concluded by praying "to Allah to accept our fasting and prayers and pray to the Almighty to grant our brothers in Palestine and us and them victory against the usurping Zionists until the liberation of all of Palestine and the establishment of their independent state with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital, the first of the two Qiblahs and the third of the Two Holy Mosques, and for the whole nation to unite around a common word to put an end to this crime and the war of annihilation and starvation.» He added: "Only on Saturday, dozens died of hunger and thirst in front of the eyes of the world, along with those who were martyred or injured by the barbaric shelling everywhere. God, O Lord, give them a clear victory, and if God gives you victory, there will be no victor for you". Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse