Eid Al Adha to start September 24

AMMAN — Eid Al Adha, or the feast of sacrifice, marking the end of the pilgrimage to Mecca, will start Thursday, September 24, according to Chief Islamic Justice Ahmad Hlayel.

The feast falls on the 10th of the lunar month of Dhul Hijja, or pilgrimage month, which will start Tuesday, according to Saudi religious authorities. 

They announced in Mecca that “the crescent of the new month was not sighted on Sunday evening,” meaning Monday will be the 30th day of Dhul Qadah, the lunar month preceding the pilgrimage month Dhul Hijja.

Religious authorities in Saudi Arabia, the birthplace of Islam, rely on sighting the new moon to determine the Islamic calendar and the beginning of lunar months.

Eid Al Adha is one of two major Islamic feasts, with the other being Eid Al Fitr, which marks the end of the fasting month of Ramadan. 

The feast of the sacrifice marks the end of the pilgrimage season, when Muslims of sufficient means are required to sacrifice livestock in remembrance of Prophet Ibrahim’s willingness to sacrifice his son Ismail to God.