Rabat- The countdown to the last day of Ramadan has begun and today the global Muslim population are anticipating Eid Al Fitr. Saudi Arabia expects to celebrate the end of Ramadan on Friday, June 15.
Eid Al Fitr or the “Feast of Breaking the Fast” in English, comes on the first day Shawwal, the tenth month of the Islamic calendar, signaling the end of Ramadan.
According to the International Astronomical Centre (IAC), most Muslim countries will celebrate the Eid Al Fitr holiday on the same day, including Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Algeria, Libya, Egypt, and Kuwait.
The countries will observe the crescent moon, indicating the start of the new month on the eve of June 14, either with a telescope or the naked eye.
The IAC predicts that the crescent will rise on that day but the moon sighting will be difficult with the naked eye, except in the far west.
IAC’s predictions are similar to those of Moroccan astronomer Abdelaziz Kharbouch Al-Ifrani’s predictions for Ramadan and Eid Al Fitr, which he presented to Morocco World News.
The astronomer forecasts that the crescent moon will be clearly observed from countries in the Western Hemisphere which includes Morocco, saying that the majority of Muslim countries will celebrate Eid Al Fitr on the same day, June 15 just as they began fasting in unison on Thursday, May 17.
Many Muslim countries take two to four days off from work during Eid Al Fitr feast.
This year, Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz extended the religious holiday to a full working week off.
Meanwhile in Morocco, the office holiday for Eid Al Fitr will last for two days, as usual in the country.
On Eid Al Fitr, Muslim families get together, perform Salat al-Eid (Eid prayer), and give Zakat Al Fitr (Eid charity) to the poor.
Some Muslims observe six days of fasting during the month of Shawwal after Eid Al Fitr, as it is prohibited to fast on the Eid which falls on the first day of Shawwal.
In Islam, the Ramadan fast coupled with six days’ fasting in Shawwal are equivalent to fasting through an entire year or a lifetime, as the Prophet Muhammed (peace be upon him) said: “Whoever fasts in Ramadan and follows it with six days of Shawwal, it will be as if he fasted for a lifetime,” (as narrated by Al-Tirmidhi).
A short overview of Eid Al Fitr:
