UAE calls on residents to sight Ramadan crescent moon on February 17
Fatwa council invites residents to report confirmed crescent sighting
Dubai: The UAE Council for Fatwa has announced that the Ramadan Crescent Moonsighting Committee will convene on Tuesday, February 17, 2026, at 6pm at the historic Qasr Al Hosn site in Abu Dhabi.
The committee will be chaired by Sheikh Abdullah bin Sheikh Al Mahfouz bin Bayyah, Chairman of the UAE Council for Fatwa, and attended by Dr Omar Habtoor Al Darei, Vice-Chairman of the Council.
The Council said the meeting falls within its mandate to observe and confirm lunar months, underscoring its role in unifying the official reference for moon sighting in the country and reinforcing a structured institutional approach to declaring the start of lunar months.
Proceedings will begin after the Maghrib prayer, when field observation reports and findings from accredited observatories across the UAE will be reviewed. The committee will also examine any testimonies submitted from different parts of the country, in line with approved religious and procedural guidelines.
The Council had earlier called on members of the public to sight the crescent on Tuesday evening and to submit reports through its designated online platform, stressing the importance of reviving the prophetic tradition of moon sighting and encouraging community participation.
It added that the official announcement confirming the start of Ramadan will be issued through authorised channels once the committee concludes its deliberations.
