Makkah, 23rd March, 2026- The Embassy of Sierra Leone in Saudi Arabia, in collaboration with Saudi philanthropist Saleh Zahrani, organised an Eid Al-Fitr dinner for about one hundred Sierra Leonean Umrah pilgrims in Makkah on Friday.
The Umrah pilgrims from Sierra Leone and the diaspora enjoyed a feast after Eid prayers, marking the end of Ramadan 1447.
In his welcome address, Deputy Ambassador Alhaji Abdul Aziz Turay congratulated the congregation on their successful Umrah and completion of Ramadan fasting. He commended His Excellency President Dr. Julius Maada Bio and Vice President Dr. Mohamed Juldeh Jalloh for their support to the Muslim community in Sierra Leone, especially during Hajj and Umrah rituals.
Amb. Turay described Eid al-Fitr as significant, saying, “We should celebrate and be thankful to Allah for enabling us to observe Ramadan successfully, which should be seen as a huge reward from Allah.”
In his keynote address, Sierra Leone’s Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, H.E Mohammed Barrie, on behalf of the Embassy staff, said he was very pleased to organise the banquet in honour of his people who congregated to celebrate Eid after observing the 30 days of fasting. He commended the Saudi philanthropist for his tremendous support to the Mission towards organising the dinner.
Ambassador Barrie commended His Excellency President Dr. Julius Maada Bio and Vice President Dr. Mohamed Juldeh Jalloh for giving him the enormous responsibility of serving as Ambassador to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the Sultanate of Oman, the State of Syria, and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), with Abdul Aziz Turay as his deputy. He said, “As we celebrate Eid, let us pray for our President, His Excellency Dr. Julius Maada Bio, and the government to succeed in their developmental trajectory,” noting that steering the ship of leadership is not an easy task. The Ambassador also made special prayers for President Bio to be in good health and wisdom to continue the mantle of leadership.
Sheikh Bailor Barrie, a Sierra Leonean scholar based in the UK, led the congregation in a special prayer, during which the scholar prayed for Allah’s acceptance of the Ummah’s fasting and all their supplications. Sheikh Barrie also prayed for His Excellency President Julius Maada Bio, the Government, and the people of Sierra Leone at home and abroad. On behalf of the pilgrims, he expressed appreciation to the Embassy for organising the Eid feast, noting that the Embassy of Sierra Leone is the only mission he is aware of that is organising such events for its Umrah pilgrims every Eid-Al Fitr consecutively since 2023.
In his brief address, Saleh Zahrani, the Saudi philanthropist, thanked the Government of Sierra Leone, the leadership, and staff of the Embassy in Saudi Arabia for the partnership and pledged his continuous support to Sierra Leone.
For enquiries:
Alhaji Abubakarr Bah, Information Attaché, Embassy of Sierra Leone, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Email: [email protected]
