Nation on Wednesday celebrated the holy Eid-ul-Fitr, the greatest religious festival of the Muslims, amid due solemnity, religious fervour, enthusiasm and gaiety ending the holy Ramadan, the month-long dawn-to-dusk fasting and abstinence. The very auspicious occasion began with the sighting of the Shawwal moon last evening and reached the climax this morning amid offering the Eid prayers by millions from all strata of life at mosques, eidgahs and makeshift prayer venues despite brief spells of rain in the capital and elsewhere across the country.

The main Eid-ul-Fitr jammat was held at the National Eidgah in the capital at 8:30am.

The main Eid jamaat was held under the auspices of Dhaka (South) City Corporation (DCC) amid tight security.

Muslims in many other countries celebrated the religious holiday on Tuesday (Jun 4), marking the end of Islam’s holy month of Ramadan.

Like the start of Ramadan, during which believers abstain from eating and drinking during daylight hours, Eid depends on the sighting of the moon and its celebration varies in different countries.

The day begins with early morning prayers and then family visits and feasts. In the Afghan capital Kabul, families celebrated with a stroll in a central park, and children played on a carousel. "We came here to celebrate Eid because this day is for happiness and all the people want to see happiness. The Afghan people hope to have peace in the country," said Abdul Raziq, a resident of the city.

Elsewhere, thousands of Muslims living in Moscow gathered in and outside the city's grand mosque to pray. Security was high and mounted police patrolled the streets.

The Moscow Cathedral Mosque, which has capacity for 10,000 people, was packed with worshippers, many of whom hail originally from Central Asia.

After Orthodox Christianity, Islam is the second biggest religion in Russia.

Thousands of faithful packed stadiums in Addis Ababa and Mogadishu and there were also mass prayers in the Nigerian capital Abuja as well as Juba in South Sudan.

In Turkey, President Tayyip Erdogan prayed at Istanbul's huge new Camlica mosque, which he formally inaugurated last month.

With details from Reuters