Some Muslim nations start celebrating 1st day of Eid al-Fitr on Saturday

By Mehmet Ali Ucar and Faruk Zorlu

ANKARA (AA) — Some Muslim nations started on Saturday to celebrate Eid al-Fitr, a religious festival marking the end of the fasting month of Ramadan, a day later than others due to differences in moon-sighting methods based on the Islamic calendar.

Differences in the method of determining the sighting of the new moon can result in variations in the start and end dates of Islamic months and, consequently, the celebration of Eid al-Fitr, which lasts three days.

Despite millions of Muslims across the world beginning to mark Eid on Friday, the first day of Eid was announced in Oman as Saturday on the grounds that the new crescent was not sighted on Friday.

Muslims in the Gullf nation gathered at mosques in the early hours of the morning to offer Eid al-Fitr prayers, marking the first day of the religious festival, the Oman News Agency (ONA) reported.

Mosques and open spaces in Morocco were also filled with people early in the morning for Eid prayers on Saturday.

In Libya, Muslims marked the first day of Eid on Friday in the country's east and on Saturday in its western region. Thousands in and around the capital Tripoli gathered in squares and mosques to perform Eid prayers on Saturday.

Mosques were also filled with worshipers in the Southeast Asian countries of Malaysia and Indonesia, home to the world's largest Muslim population, as they marked Eid al-Fitr's first day on Saturday, when Iran also started celebrating the festival.