Indonesian Government Announces Eid al-Adha 1444 H to Fall on Thursday, June 29

Jakarta, MINA – The Ministry of Religion of the Republic of Indonesia has announced 1 Zulhijah 1444 Hijriyah to fall on Tuesday, June 20, 2023. With the establishment of the beginning of this Zulhijah, Eid al-Adha 1444 H falls on Thursday, June 29, 2023.

“The isbat meeting has reached an agreement that the 1st of Zulhijah in 1444 Hijriah is set to fall on Tuesday, June 20, 2023,” said Deputy Minister of Religion Zainut Tauhid Sa’adi after chairing the Initial Isbat (Determination) Session of Zulhijah in Jakarta on Sunday.

“Thus, Eid al-Adha 1444 H falls on Thursday, June 29, 2023,” he added.

According to him, the court agreed on the decision for two reasons.

“First, we have heard a report from the Director of Islamic Religious Affairs (Urais) that the height of the new moon in Indonesia is already above the horizon, but is still below the criteria for imkanur rukyat set by MABIMS,” he said.

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Previously, in his report, the Director of Urais of the Ministry of Religion, Adib, said that based on data compiled by the Ministry of Religion’s Hisab Rukyat Team, the height of the new moon in all parts of Indonesia was above the horizon.

The height of the new moon ranges from 0° 11.78′ (zero degrees eleven point seventy eight minutes) to 2° 21.57′ (two degrees twenty one point fifty seven degrees minutes).

With an elongation angle between 4.39° (four point thirty nine degrees) to 4.93° (four point ninety three degrees).

“With these parameters, the current position of the new moon in Indonesia does not meet the New MABIMS Criteria (Ministers of Religion of Malaysia, Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia and Singapore),” he explained.

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The new MABIMS criteria stipulate, astronomically, the new moon can be observed if the moon has a minimum height of 3 degrees and a minimum elongation of 6.4 degrees.

Second, the Ministry of Religion has carried out monitoring or rukyatul hilal at 99 points in Indonesia. “Of the 34 provinces where we have placed hilal observers, none of them have witnessed the new hilal,” said Deputy Minister of Religion.

Also attending were Deputy Minister of Religion Zainut Tauhid Sa’adi, Chairman of Commission VIII DPR Ashabul Kahfi, Chairman of MUI KH Abdullah Jaidi, Director General of Islamic Community Guidance at the Ministry of Religion Kamaruddin Amin, and Grand Imam of the Istiqlal Mosque Nasaruddin Umar.

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The initial isbat meeting of Zulhijah 1444 H which was held at the HM Rasjidi Auditorium of the Ministry of Religion Office was attended by representatives of the Supreme Court, the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG), as well as Ambassadors of friendly countries.

Also present were representatives of the Geospatial Information Agency (BIG), Bosscha Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB), Planetarium, Falak Experts from Islamic mass organizations, related institutions and agencies, leaders of Islamic organizations, and Islamic boarding schools. (T/RE1/P2)

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)