In the northernmost city of Sweden, Kiruna, there is no sunset for about a month and a half in summer. About half of this Ramadan has fallen at this time. The city, located in the Arctic Circle, is now home to about 800 Muslims. Many of them fast. But where the sun does not set, when will they eat sehri and when will they break their fast? Al Jazeera.com reports on the experience of fasting in a country where the sun does not set.
In most parts of the North Pole and South Pole, the sun does not literally set at a certain time of summer. Similarly, the sun does not rise for a certain period of time in winter. This time of summer is called 'polar day' and this time of winter is called 'polar night'. The city of Kiruna in Sweden, a country in the Scandinavian region, is within 145 kilometers of the Arctic Circle. The mountain peaks are covered with white snow even in summer. The night sky is very bright throughout the summer, and the light of day is visible throughout the winter.
The town of Kiruna was founded around 100 years ago, mainly around iron mines. In the mining town of Kiruna, a large part of the total population of twenty thousand is migrant workers. Among them are Muslims seeking political asylum in Sweden from different countries. Muslims who have come here in the last few decades have struggled with the schedule of prayers and fasting due to geographical reasons. Since there is no specific provision for Muslim theologians to determine this, only a few hundred Muslims in Kiruna follow different rules.
