New moon: Ramazan to begin today in Saudi Arabia

The month of Ramazan will begin today in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Egypt and Jordan, it was officially announced in the five countries.  Saudi Arabia said Ramazan will begin on Friday in the kingdom, because the sighting of the new moon was confirmed by the authorities, according to Saudi owned television channel Al Arabiya. The exact dates of the start and the end of Ramazan depend on the sighting of the new moon as many Muslim countries reject using astronomical calculation for the Muslim lunar calendar. Ramazan in Pakistan is expected to begin on Saturday or Sunday.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 20^th, 2012.