MOGADISHU, Somalia — Somalis on Thursday marked the Prophet Muhammad's birthday with a government-declared public holiday, reviving an old tradition of merriment once banned by extremist militants who reject such public spectacle.

The Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs declared the public holiday for government and private-sector employees, citing Quranic verse on piety.

The prophet's birthday, known as Mawlid, is marked across Somalia with Quran recitations, religious song, and processions led largely by Sufi communities. Similar celebrations took place in some other parts of the Muslim world.

In the capital, Mogadishu, the streets swelled with thousands of worshippers, many of them young people in white garments and waving bright green flags. Crowds spilled out of mosques and into o

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