By Abdul Haleem
KABUL, June 25 (Xinhua) -- "My utmost desire in my life is to see the end of the lingering crisis and lasting peace returning in my homeland Afghanistan," 50-year-old Kabul resident, Khalilullah, whispered after offering Eidul-Fitr prayer in a local mosque here on Sunday.
Coming out of the mosque where hundreds of the faithful offered their Eidul-Fitr prayer amid tight security to mark the end of Ramadan - the Muslim fasting month, Khalilullah lamented that this month had been a bloody month for Afghanistan, and he expressed the hope that Eidul-Fitr holidays would be peaceful for people to enjoy life.
On May 31, a powerful car bomb that rocked Kabul left more than 150 people, mostly civilians, dead and more than 400 others injured.
Terrorists in Afghanistan attacked at least two mosques and a funeral ceremony during the month of Ramadan, killing and injuring scores of fasting people including women and children.
"Enough is enough, we have been fed up with war and insurgency in our country," lamented Khalilullah.
"How long we should be the victims of terrorist attacks?" questioned the angry man.
Afghans offered their Eidul-Fitr prayer amid tight security as the government has put all possible measures in place to ensure security during Eid holidays and festivals.
Spokesman for Interior Ministry, Najib Danish, said that the security measures had been beefed up ahead of Eidul-Fitr and police had been deployed in sensitive areas to ensure the safety of mosques, recreational places, streets and roads to make sure people enjoy Eid festivals in a peaceful environment.
"Likewise today, I am hopeful to have peace and security every day," another Kabul resident, Hajji Mohammad Rafiq, 65, told Xinhua.
Appreciating the government for providing security ahead of Eidul-Fitr, Rafiq murmured that the security apparatus is capable of providing perfect security if there is "perfect harmony and cooperation" among security organs in the country.
President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani, in his message to the nation after performing Eid prayer, called upon Taliban militants to give up fighting and join the peace process, an offer that had been rebuffed by the armed militant outfit as impossible in the presence of U.S.-led coalition forces in Afghanistan in the past.
"This is my earnest desire to have lasting peaceful life like we have today to celebrate Eidul-Fitr festival and my praying is to have lasting peace here in Afghanistan," said the shaking Rafiq.
