Gulf | Oman
Oman announces first day of Eid
Oman to celebrate first day of Eid Al Fitr on August 31
- Staff Report
- Published: 17:06 August 30, 2011
Muscat: Authorities in the sultanate have declared August 31 as the first day of Shawwal and thus the first day of Eid Al Fitr.
The announcement was made by the main moon-sighting committee on Monday, citing "astronomical calculations"in an unprecedented departure from the traditional practice of making these determinations on the basis of visual sightings of the new moon.
The use of astronomical calculations in making these determinations was endorsed by the country's highest authority on Islamic matters, the Grand Mufti, who in a statement give his backing to astronomy as a "reliable" science on such matters.
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