Ruet-e-Hilal Committee to meet today for Ramazan moon-sighting

KARACHI: Pakistan's main moon-sighting body, Central Ruet-e-Hilal Committee, will meet today (Wednesday) to sight the crescent for the holy month of Ramazan.

According to Pakistan Meteorological Department the crescent of Ramzan is likely to be sighted today (Wednesday).

The  weather will be partly cloudy in most parts of the country. In Karachi, the sun will set at 7:10pm and the moon will be observed 61 minutes after.

The Ruet-e-Hilal Committee has called on citizens to sight the crescent with the naked eye or through binoculars and to contact them to record their testimonies.

The main moon-sighting body  gathers evidence from across the country about the sighting of the crescent before announcing the start of Ramazan.

While the first day of the holy month of Ramazan will begin in Saudi Arabia tomorrow (Thursday) as the crescent was not sighted in the kingdom on Tuesday. 

 Apart from Saudi Arabia, Muslims will start observing Ramazan in Malaysia, Australia, England, Japan, UAE, Gulf nations, US and other countries across the globe on Thursday.

The holy month traditionally begins with a new moon sighting, marking the start of the ninth month in the Islamic calendar.

During this period, Muslims keep fast abstain from food, drink, and other certain activities during daylight hours and make special prayers at night.

Ramazan ends when the first crescent of the new moon is sighted again. Eid-ul- Fitr is the Islamic holiday that marks the end of Ramazan.