The Muslim holy month of Ramadan began on Tuesday amid restrictions on communal prayers and fasting due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Muslims across the world will be observing fasting during which they abstain from eating, drinking and smoking from dawn until sunset.
Many countries have allowed communal prayers with strict social distancing rules in contrast to the empty mosques a year ago when Islam’s holiest month coincided with the spike in coronavirus infections.
Ramadan, which changes each year depending on the sighting of the moon, began this year on April 13.
For Muslims, Ramadan is the month in which the first verses of the Quran, Islam’s holy book, were revealed to the Prophet Muhammad more than 1,400 years ago.
Fasting during Ramadan is one of the five pillars of Islam, along with the Muslim declaration of faith, daily prayer, charity and performing the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia.The breaking of the fast each day is called the “Iftar”, when families and communities gather to feast together. The meal starts with the eating of a single date, a tradition that originated with the Prophet Muhammad.
The Ruet-i-Hilal Committee announced on Tuesday evening that the Ramazan moon has been sighted and the first of the holy month will fall on Wednesday (tomorrow).
Addressing a press conference after a meeting of the committee in Peshawar, Central Ruet-i-Hilal Committee chairman Maulana Abdul Khabir Azad said the crescent was sighted in Karachi, Lahore, Malakand and other areas.
"The first day of fasting in Ramazan will be tomorrow, April 14, Wednesday," he said, adding that crowds in various areas of the country had spotted the moon.
The unprecedented meeting of the Ruet-i-Hilal Committee was held in Peshawar after a gap of 17 years in order to develop consensus about the start of Ramazan across the country the same day and ensure that no complaints about the sighting of the crescent were received.
Maulana Azad had told a presser last week that Mufti Shahabuddin Popalzai, who heads the local unofficial moon-sighting committee at the historic Qasim Ali Khan Mosque in Peshawar, would extend full cooperation to the central Ruet body.
Although Popalzai still headed a separate meeting of his unofficial committee today, he too announced that the first Ramazan will be on Wednesday.
Popalzai said his mosque had received 18 moon-sighting testimonies from Nowshera, 70 from Bannu and 15 from Mardan.
In his remarks today, Maulana Azad said the moon-sighting announcement made from Peshawar had sent a "message of unity" for the country, adding that the committee had held meetings with ulemas from across Pakistan to create consensus for three months.
"It is a moment of blessing that the entire nation will fast together," the Ruet committee chairman said.
