The Central Ruet-e-Hilal Committee on Tuesday announced that the moon of ZilHaj 1446 AH has not been sighted in Pakistan, which means that Eid-ul-Adha 2025 will fall on June 7 in the country.
The committee meeting was held in Islamabad to sight the ZilHaj moon. The meeting was chaired by Maulana Abdul Khabir Azad, with participation from members of central and zonal Ruet-e-Hilal committees as well as officials from Suparco, the Met Department, and other relevant institutions.
Later, in a press talk, Maulana Abdul Khabir Azad announced the committee's decision that the ZilHajj moon was not sighted anywhere in the country. Therefore, he announced, Eidul Adha will be celebrated in Pakistan on Saturday, June 7.
Moon-sighting experts from Suparco had already indicated that the chances of spotting the crescent this evening were “next to none”, citing astronomical data. At the time of sunset today, the moon was expected to be only 11 hours old, which made it visibility highly unlikely.
In Lahore, a parallel meeting of the Zonal Ruet-e-Hilal Committee was held at the Auqaf House, presided over by Mufti Muhammad Ramzan Sialvi. The session included participation from Meteorology Director Abdul Aziz, Mufti Karim, Maulana Mukhtar Ahmed Nadeem, and other religious scholars.
Mufti Sialvi told the media after the meeting that the official time for moon sighting in Lahore had passed without any credible evidence of moon visibility.
"The fixed time for moon sighting has expired, and no reliable reports of moon visibility were received during that period," Mufti Sialvi said. He added that the final announcement regarding the start of ZilHaj 1446 AH and Eid-ul-Adha 2025 will be made by chairman of the Central Ruet-e-Hilal Committee, Maulana Abdul Khabir Azad.
The cut-off time for moon sighting in Lahore is 7:43pm, while in the broader Punjab region it extends to 7:49pm.
In Karachi also, the moon was not sighted, the zonal committee announced. The committee head, Allama Hafiz Salafi, said no evidence had been received from Karachi or any part of Sindh. The Central Ruet-e-Hilal Committee has been informed.
The time for sighting the moon in Karachi was 7:51pm.
In Peshawar, the meeting of the Zonal Ruet-e-Hilal Committee in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was held at the Auqaf Hall. It later announced that the ZilHaj moon was not sighted anywhere in the city.
According to the Met Department, the moon is only about 12 hours old, making the chances of sighting it very low. Additionally, dusty weather conditions in Peshawar are further reducing visibility. "The final decision will be made by the Central Ruet-e-Hilal Committee," the Met Department emphasized.
Given the scientific assessments and low probability of moon visibility tonight, Eid-ul-Adha is most likely to fall on Saturday, June 7, according to early forecasts by the Met Office and Ruet-e-Hilal members.
