Six committees from Dar al-Ifta have been assigned to keep watch for the appearance of the moon's crescent this evening, Egypt's Grand Mufti Ali Gomaa told Al-Masry Al-Youm. If the crescent does not appear as expected, the month of Ramadan will continue for one more day. The committees are located throughout Egypt in the Cairo districts of Helwan, Moqattam, and 6th October, as well as the Red Sea, al-Wadi al-Gadeed, and Aswan. Gomaa exhorted Muslims around the world to adhere to the principles of Islamic law and rely on their local moon sightings. Mosallam Shaltout, professor of space sciences and astronomy at the Helwan Astronomical Observatory and vice president of the Arab Union for Astronomy and Space Sciences, said astronomical data forecasts that Friday, 10 September will mark the beginning of Eid al-fitr for the year 1431 on the Islamic hijri calender. The holiday signifies the end of the holy month of Ramadan and the beginning of Shawwal. Shaltout expects that the majority of Islamic and Arab states, including Saudi Arabia and all Gulf states, will celebrate Eid al-fitr on the same day. Clocks will move forward on the first day of Shawwal, Friday at midnight, and then roll back on Thursday, 30 September to put the nation on winter time. Translated from the Arabic Edition.
