Asslamo Allaikum All,

This was announced and published in Saudia media a few days ago but I forgot to mention it...

Saudi Announcement about Ramadhan & Eid:

Start of Ramadhan = Friday the 20th of July 2012

Eidul-Fitr' = Saturday  the 18th of August 2012

http://arabnews.com/saudi-arabia/ramadan-starts-july-20-says-senior-scholar

http://www.newzglobe.com/article/20120703/ramadan-and-eid-predicted

Saudi Announcements & Historical Perspective:

It is well known that Ramadhaan/Eid dates in Saudia are "managed" according to Ummul-Qura precalculated calender and claims of sighting are accepted according to per-determined dates and it is the hope of Muslims worldwide that Saudia resorts to Sunnah so the problems for Muslims living in the west (particularly) are minimized. Lets hope (and make dua) that the Saudees contradict themselves and don't follow these dates but history tells us otherwise!

There is hardly anyone in the scientific world (Muslim or Non-Muslim) who agrees with these Saudi dates, as announced above.

Saudi Scholars advise to Muslims outside of Saudia:

Saudi Scholars have NEVER imposed their sighting on anyone outside of Saudia, in fact their advise is exactly the opposite of what some Mosques are imposing on Muslims:

http://central-mosque.com/index.php/Ramadhan/do-saudi-scholars-impose-saudi-moon-sighting-on-non-saudi-residents.html
Sunnah (naked eye sighting) for Europe & USA:

For FREE email and text alerts and to keep pace with NAKED EYE SIGHTING for Europe & Africa, please register at ICOUK:

http://www.icoproject.org/icouk/index.html

For USA track naked eye sighting through:

http://www.hilalsighting.org/

Jazakullah Khairun

W_Salam,

Lets wait for Saudi annoucement for start of Ramadhan and then ***bump*** & discuss this thread...

Jazakullah Khairun

 

15 July 2012

JEDDAH — Every year, Muslims around the world wait for the announcement of the beginning of the holy month of Ramadan with anticipation. The month begins with the sighting of the new moon.

Speculations are rife this year too with some astronomers saying it is impossible to see the Ramadan crescent before Thursday and the holy month will begin Friday and others saying it will be Saturday. So far, nothing is clear except the heated debate between astronomers who rely on mathematical calculations and those who would stick to the age-old tradition of sighting the crescent with the naked eye.

Last year, some astronomers claimed the Eid Al-Fitr was celebrated on the wrong day and Saudi religious scholars made a mistake while fixing the date.

The fasting month of Ramadan comes to an end with the sighting of the Shawwal crescent in the horizon with the naked eye. Under the Shariah, if the new crescent was seen by any trustworthy person supported by two witnesses his testimony would be documented and the whole nation would accept that testimony.

The majority of Muslims all over the world still stick to the tradition of looking to the sky to start their fasting and ending it despite the availability of advanced technology to precisely determine the birth of the new moon.

With Ramadan less than a week away, people eagerly await the announcement and local newspapers have started publishing views of experts and astronomers on the beginning of the holy month.

Abdul Aziz Al-Shammari, a scholar and astronomer, stated the obvious when he told a local newspaper that the first day of Ramadan would be either Friday or Saturday.

On the other hand, Hassan Basrah, head of the Astronomy Department at Jeddah’s King Abdulaziz University, has claimed that sighting the Ramadan crescent would be impossible Thursday with the naked eye and the fasting month would not start until Saturday.

According to the Islamic Crescents’ Observation

http://www.saudigazette.com.sa/index...20120715129999

19 July 2012 - 29 Shaban 1433 H

JEDDAH — Jeddah Astronomy Society has stopped releasing statements regarding sighting of the new moon for Ramadan and denied that last year’s incident has anything to do with the decision.

Meanwhile, the Islamic Crescents’ Observation Project (ICOP), based in Abu Dhabi, released a report which stated that a new moon will not be sighted on Thursday. ICOP based the report on astronomical calculations.

Last year, a number of astronomers said the sighting of Shawwal’s new moon was impossible. Despite the declaration, the Supreme Court announced Eid based on reports by traditional moon-sighting observers.

ICOP stated that the sighting of Ramadan’s new moon on the 29th of Shaaban, would be impossible from all northern locations and some central locations in the world.

This would include Iraq, Syria and parts of Saudi Arabia. This is due to the setting of the moon before sunset. For the rest of the Arab world, the sighting of the new moon on Thursday will not be possible even with the largest telescopes due to setting of the moon at the same time as the sun.


Mohammed Odeh, ICOP President, said that according to astronomers, Ramadan will fall on Saturday but “if things go like they did last year, Ramadan will be on Friday for many countries.”

“People who see the new moon with the naked eye, are the same people who have been seeing it for the past 20 years or so. With all this technology, astronomers and experts, we have special telescopes directed to the moon and then traditional moon sighting people say they saw the moon. I believe it’s time to trust science,” Odeh said.

Although the moon will set six minutes after the sun in Makkah; 8 minutes in Sana’a, Yemen; 10 minutes in Khartoum and Djibouti; 14 minutes Mogadishu; and 19 minutes in Moroni (Comoros), the moon will not be visible to naked eye or with the aid of a telescope. It will be seen only in the far Southern region of Africa and South America, ICOP declared.

“Despite having the latest technologies and experts, if, this year, things go the way they have been going the previous years, the majority of Arab countries will start fasting on Friday. In a few countries, they accept reports that contradict Astronomical data and scientific calculations claiming that reports of a sighting by any witness should not be refuted while the moon is in the sky,” Odeh said.

The Islamic Crescents’ Observation Project urged authorities in Muslim countries to take every precaution possible to confirm with absolute certainty all sighting reports on Thursday.

Every year, countries that still rely on the traditional method of moon sighting, report sightings if enough citizens claim to have seen the moon. Many Muslim countries such as Oman and Morocco, do not rely on such reports, which are prone to error and instead use astronomical calculations to declare the beginning and end of the holy month.

This year, it is expected that many Arab countries will announce the beginning of the holy month on Friday. Other countries including Oman, Morocco and Libya are expected to account the start of fasting on Saturday.

http://www.saudigazette.com.sa/index...20120719130414

i love molana's posts!. Molana, if your reading this remember me in your duas too - muchly needed!

Asslamo Allaikum All,

1. As announced many weeks ago by Saudia (and now confirmed) their first Ramadhan is on Friday. HOWEVER, the same Saudi Ulamah also tell Non-Saudees to follow their local sighting  as you can read here:

We consulted many Ulamah on the matter and none of them could give us a crystal ball to gaze into the future and predict Ramadhaan like the Saudees and our dear respected and beloved Ulamah-e-Kiraam only knew of this Hadeeth:

Sayyidina Abu Huraira (RA) narrated that the Messenger of Allah (Sallaho Alaihe Wassallam) made a mention of the new moon and (in this connection) said: Observe fast when you see it (the new moon) and break fast when you see it (the new moon of Shawwal), but when (the actual position of the month is) concealed from you (on account of cloudy sky), then count thirty days. [Muslim]

Since today is the 29th of Shab'aan and sunset is still 2 1/2 hours away in UK and in the absence of any evidence of a future gazing crystall ball we will stick to the known Sunnah & practise of Muslims for over 1400+ years and attempt to sight the moon and fast and break our fast according to it.

Please register for your free alerts of following the Sunnah of moon sighting at ICOP-UK

Jazakullah Khairun

Jazakullah Khairun. Typo from me, now corrected.