"Several testimonies have been received from across the country and the Shawwal moon has clearly been sighted," he said while addressing a press conference at the committee room of the Ministry of Religious Affairs.
"The Central Ruet-e-Hilal Committee after receiving authentic evidence and verifying numerous testimonies has decided to celebrate Eidul Fitr on Monday,” he added.
Sharing details, he said testimonies of the moon-sighting were received from Islamabad, Lahore, Karachi and Hyderabad among other major cities.
While making the announcement, the cleric also expressed his sorrow over the recent deaths in terrorist attacks and an oil tanker fire in Bahawalpur earlier in the day.
Ruet-e-Hilal committee to meet in Islamabad for Shawwal moon sighting
The Inter-Services Public Relations director general, on behalf of Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa, gave the following message to the nation:
COAS shares grief of bereaved fellow Pakistanis on Eid. "Pak Army stands shoulder to shoulder with victims of terorism and fire" COAS (1of2)
— DG ISPR (@OfficialDGISPR) June 25, 2017
"In Sha Allah we will overcome all challenges by staying united and steadfast as a nation. Eid Mubarak" COAS. (2 of 2)
— DG ISPR (@OfficialDGISPR) June 25, 2017
The Pakistan Meteorological Department had already predicted that the Shawwal moon was likely to be sighted on Sunday.
The federal government too had already announced Eid holidays from Monday, June 26 to Wednesday, June 28.
However, all efforts for one Eid across the country fell flat this year too with Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Federally-Administered Tribal Areas celebrating Eid on Sunday when the rest of the country was fasting.
Even with its lead cleric, Mufti Shahabuddin Popalzai, missing from the country, Peshawar’s Masjid Qasim Khan took lead from the rest of the country in announcing the end of Ramazan on Saturday, and declaring Eid on Sunday.
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