Marking the end of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan in Iraq, this year’s Eid al Fitr festival took place in an atmosphere of fear.

Sunni militants edge ever closer to the capital and Baghdad’s morgues receive more victims of sectarian killings each week.

Traditionally the festival is celebrated with thanksgiving, feasts and the exchange of gifts upon the sighting of the new moon.

In Pakistan, Eid is being celebrated against the backdrop of a military operation in North Waziristan, and police are anticipating a wave of Taliban bomb attacks.

They were on red alert, to ensure the festivities passed off peacefully.

“The security arrangements were really very impressive. Thank Allah, we offered our prayers without any fear or security concerns. Everyone prayed in a very peaceful atmosphere,” explained Karachi shop owner, Mohammad Sadiq.

Many of the prayers went out to fellow Muslims in Gaza, and the children who are now living on the front line of the conflict.