Capitals – Arab Canada News

The Arab and Islamic countries have once again seen a divergence in determining the date of Eid al-Fitr, amid differences in methods of sighting the Shawwal crescent, leading some countries to announce that Sunday, March 30, is the first day of Eid, while others declared that Monday, March 31, is Eid day, in a recurring scene that reflects the challenges related to unifying the lunar calendar.

Sunday is the first day of Eid in the Gulf countries and several Arab nations

Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Bahrain, Yemen, Palestine, Lebanon, Sudan, and Djibouti announced that Sunday is the first day of Eid al-Fitr, after the official authorities in these countries confirmed the sighting of the Shawwal crescent on Saturday evening through observatories or certified testimonies.

Monday in Egypt, Morocco, Iraq, and the Maghreb countries

In contrast, Egypt, Oman, Tunisia, Algeria, Libya, Iraq, Syria, Jordan, and Morocco announced that Monday is the first day of Eid, after the sighting of the crescent was not possible on Saturday evening, according to what the relevant legal bodies announced, leading to the completion of the month of Ramadan to thirty days.

The Islamic communities in the West face multiple references

In Western countries, especially Canada and the United States, Islamic communities experienced internal differences in announcing Eid, with some Islamic centers relying on astronomical sighting or decisions from the Gulf countries to determine Sunday as the first day of Eid, while other centers preferred to adhere to the decisions of their countries of origin or wait for announcements from local jurisprudential councils, resulting in communities celebrating on different dates.

Reasons for the differences: Geography and varying sighting criteria

It is worth noting that there has not been a unified agreement throughout modern history among Islamic countries regarding the beginning of lunar months, due to several factors, the most prominent of which are:

• Geographical distance: The possibility of sighting the crescent varies from one country to another depending on its location on the globe.

• Sighting criteria: Some countries rely solely on visual sightings, others combine astronomical calculations with legal sightings, while some countries depend entirely on precise astronomical calculations.

• Weather conditions: Such as clouds and dust can hinder the sighting of the crescent even if it is astronomically possible, leading to differences in determining the beginnings of lunar months. Astronomical calculations confirm the possibility of sighting the crescent

Specialized astronomical centers have reported that the sighting of the Shawwal crescent on Sunday evening was possible in several regions of the Islamic world, especially in the Maghreb countries, where the sighting conditions were favorable and the crescent's altitude was suitable, thus reinforcing the validity of some countries adopting Monday as Eid al-Fitr.

Calls for a unified lunar calendar

This year, the jurisprudential and scientific debate has revived regarding the need to unify the Islamic sighting by adopting a global lunar calendar based on precise astronomical calculations, in order to avoid the annual division that confuses millions of Muslims, both within the Islamic world and abroad.
Eid Mubarak, and may you have a good year.