Eid Al-Fitr 2021 begins on Thursday May 13 in Saudi Arabia
The Shawwal crescent moon was not sighted on Tuesday in all GCC countries…
It’s official. Wednesday, May 12 is the last day of the holy month of Ramadan and Thursday, May 13, marks the first day of Eid Al-Fitr.
According to Saudi Arabia’s moon sighting committee in a statement by Saudi Press Agency, the crescent of the month of Shawwal could not be seen from the Tamir observatory. Eid Al-Fitr would have started one day earlier had the moon been seen.
NEWS | ‘Crescent not Sighted, Eid Al Fitr on Thursday’
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— Haramain Sharifain (@hsharifain) May 11, 2021
The Eid Al-Fitr celebrations, also called the “Festival of Breaking the Fast”, signify the end of a month of piety and dawn-to-sunset fasting for the world’s 1.9 billion Muslims. A special prayer marks the occasion on the morning of the first of Shawwal.
The Eid holidays have already begun and will continue until May 17 for those in the public sector. The private sector, on the other hand, is entitled to a four-day holiday.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Health has urged citizens and expatriates in the Kingdom to be more cautious in compliance with Covid-19 protocols to avoid a surge in cases during the Eid Al-Fitr holidays.
“We don’t want a repeat of last year’s Eid,” said ministry spokesman Dr Mohammed Al-Abd Al-Aly. Saudi Arabia went into a complete 24-hour lockdown for five days during the Eid Al-Fitr holidays in 2020. The ministry earlier this month denied rumours of another lockdown but warned that authorities would remain vigilant.
The first day of Eid Al-Fitr will be celebrated across the GCC countries and most of the Arab countries on Thursday, May 13.
The What’s On team wishes everyone celebrating a blessed Eid.
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