ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Central Ruet-e-Hilal Committee will meet in Karachi later today on Sunday evening to sight the moon of Dhu Al-Hijjah, the Islamic month during which Muslims perform the annual Hajj pilgrimage, the religious affairs ministry said.
Pakistan launched its pre-Hajj flight operation last month and is expected to send more than 179,000 pilgrims to Saudi Arabia for Hajj this year. The beginning of the month determines the dates for Hajj rituals and the Muslim festival of Eid Al-Adha.
“The meeting of Central Ruet-e-Hilal Committee (CRHC) for sighting the Moon of Dhul-Hijjah 1447/2026 will be held In-Shaa-Allah [God willing] in the evening of Sunday, the 17th May 2026 ... at Pakistan Meteorological Department, Karachi,” the ministry said in a statement on Saturday.
The ministry said zonal and district Ruet-e-Hilal committees would also hold meetings at their respective headquarters on the same date and time.
The chairman of the Central Ruet-e-Hilal Committee, Maulana Syed Muhammad Abdul Khabir Azad, will announce the final decision regarding moon sighting based on information received from across the country, according to the statement.
