About 30,000 people will pack
Istiqlal Mosque in Central Jakarta on Thursday evening for a mass prayer
to mark the end of the Ramadan fasting month, including poor families and 5,000 orphans.
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, First Lady Ani Yudhoyono, Vice President
Boediono, his wife Herawati Boediono and a number of Cabinet members are slated
to join the prayer, secretary of the event’s organizing committee Akbar Suwito
told kompas.com.
The orphans and the needy will receive Idul Fitri gifts provided by state
enterprises during the event.
As of 6 p.m. Muslims were seen streaming into the mosque despite the rain.
Dozens of police and military troops guarded the area around the biggest mosque
in Southeast Asia.
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