Pakistan’s central Ruet-i-Hilal Committee officially sighted the Zilhaj crescent moon on Sunday evening, marking the start of the final Islamic month and scheduling Eid ul Azha for Wednesday, May 27.
The announcement from Chairman Maulana Abdul Khabeer Azad in Karachi aligns Pakistan’s religious calendar directly with Saudi Arabia, following a matching declaration from the Saudi Supreme Court just hours earlier. Similar to how regional authorities managed the Eid ul-Fitr crescent sighting earlier this year, the central committee coordinated with local zonal networks across the country to verify physical visibility.
During an initial press briefing around 7:30 PM local time, Azad reported that no testimonies had been received, but he maintained there were ample chances of visibility based on meteorological data. The Pakistan Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (Suparco) indicated the new moon was born at 1:01 AM on May 17, making it 18 hours and 30 minutes old by sunset, according to the initial committee briefing in Karachi.
Suparco identified a 60-minute visibility window along the coastal belt, and physical testimonies arrived shortly after the initial update. The final confirmation was issued at 8:16 PM local time.
The committee’s official sighting declaration legally concludes the month of Zilqad and triggers the beginning of the Zilhaj Islamic month on Monday, May 18. This announcement directly locks in the federal public holiday schedule for the upcoming Eid festivities across Pakistan, finalizing the calendar according to regional scheduling authorities.
Pakistan will celebrate the festival simultaneously with the broader Middle East this year. The Saudi Supreme Court announced their successful sighting on the exact same evening, officially aligning the two nations’ observances on May 27, according to state media tracking the Saudi announcement.