Chances high of Eid-ul-Fitr moon being sighted on Sunday: Met dept

ISLAMABAD: There are visible chances of the Eid moon being sighted on June 25, Sunday, according to the Pakistan Meteorological Department.

As per the Met office, the Shawwal moon started appearing in the sky at 7:29AM on Saturday. Scientifically, the moon will be sighted for the longest duration in Pakistan in Jiwani area of Balochistan on June 25.

The moon will be seen in the sky for 75 minutes.

Since the sky is also expected to be clear in most parts of the country on June 25, there are chances it be sighted on that evening i.e. after the 29th fast in many areas of Pakistan is observed, according to the Met department. Therefore, chances are high of Eid being celebrated on June 26 across the country.

However, a meeting of the Central Reut-e-Hilal will be held on Sunday (tomorrow).

Peshawar moon-sighting

On the other hand, there are chances that people in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the Federally Administered Tribal Areas will enjoy the festival on the same day as a moon-sighting meeting will not be held in Peshawar's Masjid Qasim Ali Khan. This will be unlike the preceding years in which many people in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the Federally Administered Areas have celebrated Eid a day earlier.

According to sources, the meeting will not be held as Mufti Shahabuddin Popalzai was not in the country, leaving changes that many people in the province and the adjoining tribal areas celebrate Eid with the rest of Pakistan.  

With additional input from our correspondent in Peshawar