Saudi Arabia, home to Islam’s holiest sites, announced that the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr marking the end of the Ramadan fasting period will begin on Sunday.
“The Supreme Court has decided that tomorrow, Sunday, March 30, 2025, is the first day of Eid al-Fitr,” the Royal Court said in a statement carried by the official Saudi Press Agency on X.
The timing of Eid al-Fitr is determined by the sighting of the crescent moon, in accordance with the Muslim lunar calendar.
The United Arab Emirates and Qatar also announced Sunday would be the first day of the holiday.
Meanwhile Oman and Shiite-majority Iran said that Eid al-Fitr would start on Monday.
During Ramadan, observant Muslims refrain from eating and drinking from dawn to dusk, and traditionally gather with family and friends to break their fast in the evening.
Fasting is widely practised in Saudi Arabia, home of the Grand Mosque in Mecca and the Prophet’s Mosque in Medina.
Across the Muslim world, Ramadan festivities this year were overshadowed by Israel’s resumption of hostilities in Gaza, where its military campaign to eradicate Hamas has killed tens of thousands of people, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory.
AFP
