Ramadan's holiness never stopped Iraqi Muslims from shooting at Iranian Muslims in the 1980s, or Egyptian Muslims from gassing Yemeni co-religionists in the 1960s. Yet U.S.-allied Muslim leaders are suggesting a cease-fire for the month in which Muslims fast in the daytime, feast at night and reflect on their relationships with God. This year, Ramadan starts in mid-November.
A Western-led Ramadan assault in Afghanistan would be an affront at a time when the U.S. needs to cultivate and not alienate skeptical Muslims, said Osama el-Baz, a top adviser to Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.
Earlier, Pakistan's President, Gen. Pervez Musharraf, a key ally, pleaded for restraint during Ramadan.
The appeals have had an effect. Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, who bluntly rejected such an option just days ago - "The Taliban and al-Qaida are unlikely to take a holiday," he said - appeared to be softening his message Tuesday.
"We clearly are interested in the views and opinions and sensitivities and that each country has their own circumstance and their own neighborhood they live in," Rumsfeld said. Bureau Report