Muslims in the Midlands break fast during the first Eid celebrations without Covid restrictions

ITV News Central Reporter Lewis Warner reports from Victoria Park in Leicester where thousands have gathered to celebrate Eid

Tens of thousands of Muslims across the Midlands are celebrating the first Eid holiday without Covid restrictions since the start of the pandemic.The holiday marks the end of fasting during the holy month of Ramadan. In Leicester, worshippers gathered in Victoria Park for morning prayers.

Around 20,000 people are expected to visit the funfair and food stalls during the day.Event organiser Naeem Mohammed said: "It's very important for the community and brings them all together, whether you're from Somalia, Pakistan, the Middle East, Algeria, they all come together."It's fantastic, especially after the last two years. It's the biggest turnout we've ever had in the last eight or nine years. It's getting bigger and bigger."

Some families have been feeling the squeeze during Ramadan due to the cost of living crisis. Ahead of Eid-al-Fitr, the charity Islamic Relief has been calling for more support to families affected by rising global food prices.It says it has provided food parcels to more than 1.3 million people during the holy month of Ramadan, despite challenges with rising food prices.

Eid celebrations are taking place in Leicester's Victoria Park Credit: ITV News Central

Zaheer Afzal, who has coordinated Islamic Relief Worldwide’s Ramadan distributions for over 10 years, said: "Global hunger is rising, due to many factors including the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic and now made worse by the crisis in Ukraine. 

"These Ramadan food parcels provide poor families with a vital lifeline at this critical time.

"But the combination of rising food and fuel prices and disruption to supply chains has made this the most challenging Ramadan distributions that I can remember.

"It’s getting ever more expensive to fill even basic food parcels and to transport them to remote communities."But thanks to our supporters around the world and the efforts of our teams on the ground, we have still managed to reach even more people than last year and spread some hope around the world."