Muslims around world marking end of Ramadan

Shiites observe the crescent moon to determine the start of the 10th Islamic month of Shawwal, which marks the end of a month-long fasting of Ramadan and the beginning of the Eid al-Fitr festival in Najaf, Iraq (Anmar Khalil/AP)

Large parts of the Muslim world marked the end of the fasting month of Ramadan at sundown on Thursday and ushered in the holiday of Eid al-Fitr, but the festivities were overshadowed by raging battles for control of Sudan and a deadly stampede in Yemen.

In other parts of the region, the holiday came against the backdrop of reconciliation and rapprochement between former rivals.