UPDATE - Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE announce 1st day of Ramadan on Wednesday

UPDATES WITH QATAR, UAE, REVISES HEADLINE, DECK

By Rania Abushamala

ISTANBUL (AA) – Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates announced the start of the holy month of Ramadan on Wednesday.

A statement by the Saudi Royal Court said the new moon of holy month was sighted Tuesday evening and that fasting will start on Wednesday.

Qatar’s Moon Sighting Committee also said that the holy month will start on Wednesday after the new moon was sighted. A similar announcement was made by the UAE Presidential Court.

Muslims in Türkiye, Oman, Singapore and Australia will begin fasting in Ramadan on Thursday, after authorities confirmed the start of the holy month based on astronomical calculations.

Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic lunar calendar.

While some countries rely on local moon sighting, others increasingly use astronomical calculations to determine the start of the month, particularly when scientific data confirms the impossibility of visual observation.