KARACHI: Eid celebrations in Pakistan are increasingly featuring flavorful cakes alongside traditional sweets, a trend that has developed over the years, with shopkeepers reporting strong sales of these cakes even amid high inflation, indicating their establishment as a festive staple.
Eid Al-Fitr marks the end of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan and is a time of joy, unity and reflection for the followers of Islam across the world. There is a long-held tradition among Muslims to celebrate the occasion by consuming different varieties of sweets.
In Pakistan, people prepare and share a variety of sweet dishes with family, friends and neighbors. The most popular one associated with the festival is sheer khurma, which blends together vermicelli, milk, sugar, dried fruits and nuts.
However, more recently, people have also started buying cakes, especially before visiting others.
“Cake sales are very high, it’s a running item,” Ahmed Ali, a salesman at Karachi’s United Bakery, told Arab News. “The sales significantly increase during Eid and we hardly get a moment to sit or stand still.”
Ali said many of his customers rush to buy cakes ahead of Eid since his outlet offers a wide variety of them.
“We have Coconut Lemon Layer Cake, which is very popular,” he continued. “We also offer Chocolate Fudge, Ferrero, Kit Kat and Cadbury cakes, all of which have high sales.”
The growing popularity of Eid cakes, particularly among children, is not merely a culinary trend but a reflection of evolving societal norms and cultural dynamics.
“Nowadays, children have become more modern,” Aftab Ahmed, a resident of Karachi’s Sultanabad, told Arab News at the Fresco Bakers. “They are shifting toward cakes and leaving behind [traditional] sweets.”
“I decided to buy these cakes in advances, keeping in mind my children’s preference,” he said, adding that cakes had still not completely replaced traditional sweets in Pakistan.
Muhammad Shabbir, a sales manager at Karachi’s famous Fresco Bakers, informed the demand for cakes significantly increases during Eid days.
“The demand doubles in comparison to regular days,” Shabbir said, adding the sales growth was somewhat subdued this time due to high inflation.
He said his customers preferred ice cakes to other verities of the confections during Eid.
“The demand for ice cakes surges during Eid Al-Fitr while the demand for other cakes remains normal,” he added.
Another cake buyer, Hina Rao, a housewife, said that her children also liked ice cakes as Eid treat.
“I like to buy cake from here because my children like pastries and ice-cakes,” she said while placing an order for Eid cakes at Bhashani Sweets at the Burns Road in Karachi. “So, on the occasion of Eid, I buy these cakes from here.”
The emergence of Eid cakes in Pakistan is not just about satisfying one’s passion for a sweet tooth but also about celebrating cultural diversity, fostering creativity and embracing the spirit of togetherness. Beyond the realm of personal celebrations, Eid cakes are also driving sales at local bakeries across Pakistan.
On Eid in Pakistan, cakes are a unifying staple
https://arab.news/zcp87
On Eid in Pakistan, cakes are a unifying staple
- Pakistani bakeries mention a gradual shift toward modern culinary trend, with more people buying Eid cakes
- Customers say children demand cakes instead of traditional sweets, though elder still prefer sheer khurma
Militant ‘ringleader’ among six insurgents killed in northwest Pakistan — army
- Military conducts frequent operations against militants it claims launch attacks from safe havens in Afghanistan
- Militants have intensified attacks on army and its bases since revoking ceasefire with government in late 2022
ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Army said on Monday a militant “ringleader” was among six insurgents killed in two intelligence-based operations in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
In recent months, the military has launched frequent operations in the restive Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan. The army’s target in the area is militants it says launch attacks inside Pakistan and against the army using safe havens in Afghanistan, a charge Kabul denies.
Groups like the Pakistani Taliban, commonly known as the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), have been waging a war against the Pakistani state for nearly two decades in a bid to overthrow the government and replace it with what they consider an Islamic system of governance.
“On 20-21 April 2025, six Khwarij [militants] were sent to hell in two separate engagements in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province,” the army said in a statement.
One operation was in the South Waziristan district, where the army said militant “ringleader” Zabi Ullah was killed. The statement said he had “remained actively involved in numerous terrorist activities against security forces as well as in target killing of innocent civilians and was highly wanted by the Law Enforcement Agencies.”
Another intelligence-based operation was conducted in Razmak, North Waziristan District, in which five militants were killed.
Militants have intensified their attacks since revoking a ceasefire with the government in late 2022, with recent months witnessing significant strikes targeting the military and its bases.
Pakistani religious parties announce Gaza rally at Lahore’s Iconic Minar-e-Pakistan
- Religious parties say are forming new pro-Gaza platform called Majlis-e-Ittehad-e-Ummat
- Platform to launch nationwide awareness campaigns to boycott Israeli products and companies
ISLAMABAD: The chief of Pakistan’s main religious-political party, the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam F (JUI-F), said on Monday the JUI-F and other religious parties would stage a protest rally in solidarity with Palestinians at the iconic Minar-e-Pakistan monument in Lahore on Apr. 27.
The move follows a Gaza Solidarity March organized by another religio-political party, Jamaat-e-Islami (JI), on a main road connecting Islamabad and Rawalpindi last week that was attended by thousands.
“A very big rally will be held at Minar-e-Pakistan in Lahore on Apr. 27 along with a protest,” JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman said on Monday at a press conference in Lahore alongside JI chief Hafiz Naeem-ur-Rehman.
“We all will participate along with other religious parties. We are forming a new platform now by the name of Majlis-e-Ittehad-e-Ummat.”
He also said nationwide awareness campaigns would be launched by the platform to boycott Israeli products.
Separately, the JI has announced a nationwide strike on Apr. 26 in solidarity with Palestine and urged citizens to boycott brands that support Israel amid its ongoing military offensive in Gaza.
Pakistan does not maintain diplomatic relations with Israel and has for decades condemned its military actions in Gaza.
Islamabad has called for the immediate resumption of humanitarian aid to the besieged enclave and a revival of negotiations toward a two-state solution. The country has long supported the establishment of an independent Palestinian state based on pre-1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.
Since October 7, 2023, when Israel launched its latest military assault on Gaza, more than 51,000 Palestinians have been killed and over 116,000 injured.
Free ambulance service in southern Pakistan delivers babies, and hope, onboard
- Nearly 100 babies successfully delivered inside Sindh Integrated Emergency and Health Services ambulances this year
- As per UN report, Pakistan was among four countries that accounted for nearly half of all maternal deaths worldwide in 2023
MAKLI, Sindh: Earlier this month close to the crack of dawn, a free ambulance service in southern Pakistan received a call that a 26-year-old woman from a remote village in Thatta had gone into labor without a health facility nearby for miles.
Within minutes of receiving the call, a Sindh Integrated Emergency and Health Services (SIEHS) ambulance staffed with health workers trained in emergency obstetric care sped off toward Shabeera Bibi’s location in the Sindh province. The paramedics stabilized her and left with her for the nearest health center but realized soon that there just wasn’t enough time to reach the facility.
With her husband’s consent, Shabeera’s baby boy was delivered in the moving ambulance, one of 100 babies born in an SIEHS ambulance in this year alone.
“I was in a lot of pain when I was about to deliver, the baby’s condition was also at risk and my water had broken,” Bibi recalled, sitting on a charpoy back at home in her mud home in Hussain Notiar village.
In her arms, she held her newborn son Fayyaz.
“I am simply grateful to Allah for saving my baby and my life, and that my baby is still with me today.”
Pakistan’s Sindh province is the second most populated province of the country where 30 percent of women receive no prenatal care, 60 percent do not give birth in a health facility, and the maternal mortality ratio is thrice the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal 3 target.
As per a recent United Nations report, Pakistan was among four countries that accounted for nearly half of all maternal deaths worldwide in 2023. The situation is dire in rural districts such as Thatta, where the health infrastructure is shoddy and few skilled birth attendants are available.
Set up in 2021, SIEHS, which runs as a public-private partnership, wants to fill the gap, with its ambulances, called ‘HOPE,’ providing free and round-the-clock assistance to people in Sindh though the 1122 helpline.
“Our job is to respond to emergencies,” Farheen Haider, an emergency Mmedical technician (EMT) at SIEHS, told Arab News. “When it’s a delivery case, we respond immediately. If the situation is more critical, we try to manage the patient on the way.”
Since its establishment, SIEHS has delivered 400 babies in ambulances across Sindh, with the mothers surviving in all cases, Haider added.
Shabeera’s was one such case in which paramedics worked in the confined space of the ambulance, performing the delivery and administering immediate postnatal care, including carrying out an APGAR scoring to gauge the health of the baby, as well as cleaning the mother and baby and cutting the umbilical cord.
The baby’s grandmother, Haseena Bibi, recalled the ordeal the woman went through that day.
“We are very poor and we couldn’t reach the hospital … we were very worried and then the girl [Shabeera] said that she couldn’t bear it anymore,” Haseena said.
She said the ambulance arrived quickly and Shabeera gave birth on the way.
Around 600 HOPE ambulances are operating in various districts of Sindh, Wazeer Ahmed, SIEHS regional manager told Arab News.
One of the main objectives of the service, he explained, was to move expecting women to hospitals:
“But if there are complications or the baby is about to be delivered, we take permission from the parents or the husband and proceed with the delivery inside the ambulance.”
Pakistan says Saudi Arabia has granted additional 10,000 slots for private Hajj scheme
- Nearly 90,000 Pakistanis are expected to perform Hajj pilgrimage under government scheme
- Around 23,620 Pakistani were to perform Hajj through private scheme before new slots added
ISLAMABAD: Religious Affairs Minister Sardar Muhammad Yousaf said on Monday Saudi Arabia had granted Pakistan an additional 10,000 slots for Hajj pilgrims traveling under the private scheme.
The annual Islamic pilgrimage is expected to take place this year in June. Pakistan and Saudi Arabia signed the Hajj Agreement 2025 in January, under which Pakistan was given a quota of 179,210 for the pilgrimage to be divided equally between government and private schemes.
Nearly 90,000 Pakistanis are expected to travel to Saudi Arabia under the government scheme this year and 23,620 Pakistani were to perform Hajj through private tour operators, which means that over 60,000 slots from the total quota had remained unfilled.
“We have been allowed 10,000 more in the quota, this is not government but private quota,” Yousaf told reporters.
The development has not yet been confirmed by Saudi authorities.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has constituted a three-member inquiry committee to probe why Pakistan had failed to use the full 179,210 quota for Hajj 2025.
Hajj flight operations will begin from Apr. 29 with the first flight departing from Pakistan’s eastern city of Lahore.
While a precise number for Hajj 2025 is difficult to determine in advance, projections suggest it will be a record-breaking year, with over 2.5 million pilgrims expected.
Confident Peshawar Zalmi face Karachi Kings in PSL X clash tonight
- Zalmi last week defeated Multan Sultans by a record-breaking 120 runs
- Islamabad United beat Karachi Kings by six wickets on Sunday night
ISLAMABAD: A confident Peshawar Zalmi squad, led by skipper Babar Azam, will lock horns with Karachi Kings in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) X clash in the southern port city of Karachi tonight.
Zalmi will head into the match with their heads high after registering a record 120-run win over former champions Multan Sultans last week. The “Yellow Storm,” courtesy of impressive contributions from Tom Kohler-Cadmore, Hussain Talat, Abdul Samad and a fiery spell from young pacer Ali Raza, beat Multan to register their first win of this year’s PSL.
Karachi Kings are placed at the number three spot in the PSL points table. They have had a mixed tournament so far, winning two matches and losing two so far. The Kings had a horrible outing on Sunday, losing their PSL fixture to table-toppers Islamabad United who beat them by six wickets after scoring a modest 128/7 from their 20 overs.
“From the capital to the City of Lights, Zalmi on the move,” the franchise wrote on Instagram, showing a video of skipper Azam arriving in Karachi with his players.
Zalmi are placed at number five on the PSL points table, with only two points under their belt in the tournament so far. The Yellow Storm lost their opening two matches before registering a record win over Multan.
Former Pakistan captain Azam and explosive hitter Saim Ayub are expected to open for the squad while in Cadmore, Mohammad Haris, Samad and Hussain Talat, Zalmi have plenty of batting firepower to dismantle any bowling line-up.
Spinner Arif Yaqoob and Raza were instrumental in Peshawar’s win over Multan last week, returning figures of 3/20 and 4/21 from their four overs respectively.
The match is scheduled to begin at 8:00 p.m. Pakistan Standard Time.
