CAIRO, March 27 (MENA) - Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouli said the Ramadan 15 iftar banquet in Cairo's working-class neighborhood of Matariyah is a great initiative that reflects the ingenuity of the Egyptian people.

During a meeting with the organizing team of the mega-iftar banquet at the Cabinet headquarters in the New Administrative Capital on Wednesday, Madbouli thanked the event organizers for generous efforts, urging them to keep the initiative alive.

He said mass-iftar banquet, which saw the participation of thousands of locals, volunteers from other governorates, as well as foreign nationals and non-Muslims, had also demonstrated synergy and cohesion among the people of Matariyah, and a spirit of cooperation shared by all Egyptians in general, especially in times of crises, which helps in promoting of a culture of citizenship and strengthening fraternal bonds.

According to organizers, the mass-banquet, held on Monday for the 10th consecutive year, attracted some 400 volunteers who helped to line up about 700 tables along a handful of connected, and ornately decorated, streets and alleys and then fill them with food prepared by community members.

There was no official count, but those behind the gathering claimed as many as 30,000 people had turned up to break their fast after sundown. (MENA)

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