Not a Ramadan to remember for Palestinians in the West Bank

Doom and gloom: Israeli military vehicles in near the West Bank city of Jenin early this month. An Israeli military operation has uprooted tens of thousands of Palestinians who can’t break their fast in their own homes and don’t know when, or if, they will ever return. — Afif Amireh/The New York Times

THE bustle of Ramadan markets has been reduced to a trickle of sombre shoppers. A heavy silence has replaced lively chatter. No lanterns glow in windows, and the strings of lights that crisscrossed alleyways, flickering above children playing in the streets, have gone dark.

“Ramadan used to shine,” said Mahmoud Sukkar, a father of four in the West Bank. “Now, it’s just darkness.”