Egyptians hold up signs around an Iftar table, as they wait to break their daytime fast during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, in Egypt’s Mediterranean city of Alexandria, Friday, June 26, 2015 (Photo: AP)
The Egyptian city of Alexandria set a new Guinness world record for the longest public iftar table on Friday, despite scuffles that marred the event.
The governorate of Alexandria organised a 4,303 metre-long chain of dining tables for Muslims breaking their daily Ramadan fast at the iftar meal.
The seaside iftar tables extended from Al-Mahrousa district in the west of the city to Sidi Gaber in the east, and smashed a previous two-kilometre record set in Italy.
Guinness representatives measured the tables, ensuring that they were adjacent to each other with no spaces in-between, Al-Ahram Arabic website reported.
However, a number of scuffles and fights broke out among the attendees due to apparent mismanagement of the event, with attendees complaining about the scarcity of the food and water distributed.
Wafaa Abdel-Rahman told Al-Ahram Arabic that she and her family felt "offended" as no one passed by to distribute food, with organisers instead throwing the limited supplies to the angry crowd from vans.
The event was organised by the Alexandria governorate in cooperation with a number of businessmen and civil society groups, and aimed to feed 10,000 people free of charge.
Dozens of businessmen and other donors partially funded the event.
The Egyptian armed forces and police also provided food for the event as well as security.
Free iftar events, funded by a variety of religious organisations, charities, and individuals, have traditionally provided free iftar meals for less wealthy Muslims during Ramadan in Egypt.
Short link: