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View all search resultsRamadan starts Thursday, says government
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Muslim boys gather to watch the position of the moon to determine the start of the holy fasting month of Ramadan, on the roof of Al-Musyari'in mosque in Jakarta, Indonesia, February 17, 2026. (Reuters/Ajeng Dinar Ulfiana)
The government has announced that Ramadan will start on Thursday following an isbat (moon sighting confirmation) meeting on Tuesday.
Religious Affairs Minister Nasaruddin Umar led the meeting in Jakarta, which was attended by representatives from Muslim groups, such as the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI), as well as lawmakers from the House of Representatives Commission XIII overseeing religious affairs and representatives from the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN).
The meeting came into conclusion on the start of the fasting month after the hilal, the first crescent moon that marks a new month in the lunar Islamic calendar, was not visible with the naked eye on Tuesday at sunset from nearly 100 observation points across the country.
The government combines the old-fashioned sighting of the moon with astronomical calculations called hisab to determine the first day of Ramadan.
“The first crescent moon has not yet been visible today [Tuesday] across Indonesia, as it is still below the horizon,” Nasaruddin told a press conference after the meeting.
“Therefore, due to the absence of a visible moon and based on the hisab results, [the meeting] agreed that the first day of Ramadan falls on Thursday.”
Meanwhile, Muhammadiyah, the second largest Muslim organization that relies on hisab, which calculates the geometrical position of the Moon in relation to Earth and the Sun, had earlier announced that Ramadan would begin on Wednesday.
