Eid al-Adha, during which Muslims perform the Qurban ritual by slaughtering livestock as a form of sacrifice, is celebrated on the 10th day of Dhu al-Hijjah.
"According to consensus, the first day of Dhu al-Hijjah will fall on Tuesday, June 20, 2023," Deputy Religious Affairs Minister Zainut Tauhid Sa'adi stated at the press conference to announce the start of the Dhu al-Hijjah month on Sunday (June 18).
The deputy minister noted that the decision was taken after the hilal, or new crescent moon, observation took place at various points nationwide. No observers from the 99 observation points in 34 provinces reported the sighting of the moon.
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According to the ministry's Hijri Calendar Unification Team presentation, the new moon's position observed in Indonesia on Sunday ranged from 0 degrees and 20 minutes to two degrees and 36 minutes, while its elongation angle was at four degrees and 40 minutes until four degrees and 94 minutes.
The position of the observed moon is still below the threshold of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore Religious Affairs Ministers' (MABIMS') criteria of at least three degrees over the horizon, with an elongation angle of 6.4 degrees.
The government's Eid al-Adha Day decision differed from that of the major Indonesian Muslim organization Muhammadiyah, which, according to its own moon sighting criteria, decided that the day would fall on Wednesday, June 28, 2023.
Meanwhile, Malaysia will celebrate Eid al-Adha on the same day as Indonesia on June 29, as announced by the assistant secretary of the country's Keeper of the Ruler's Seal, Mohd Aseral Jusman, during a live television broadcast on Sunday.
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Translator: Asep Firmansyah, Nabil Ihsan
Editor: Yuni Arisandy Sinaga
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