Muslim nations announce start of Ramadan in shadow of Gaza war

Ramadan will begin on Monday, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE announced, with the Muslim holy fasting month taking place against a backdrop of devastating war in Gaza.

Saudi Arabia, which is home to Islam's holiest sites, said through its official SPA news agency on Sunday that the Supreme Court had announced "Monday, March 11, 2024, the beginning of the blessed month of Ramadan for this year".

The United Arab Emirates and Qatar also announced the start date for Ramadan through their own official news outlets after the sighting of the crescent moon.

Earlier, Iran had set the beginning of Ramadan for Tuesday after its "Estehlal" or moon observation office said it had not been possible to observe "the crescent of Ramadan".

In Saudi Arabia, the start of the holy month had been cast into doubt after some of the kingdom's observatories reported that the moon was obscured by "cloudy weather and dust particles".

But final confirmation of the sighting was given through the Al Majmaah University Astronomical Observatory in Riyadh.

The daytime fasting month of Ramadan is one of the five pillars of Islam.

Observant Muslims refrain from eating and drinking from dawn to dusk, and traditionally gather with family and friends to break their fast in the evening.

It is also a time of prayers, with the faithful converging in large numbers at mosques, especially at night.

The war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip has cast a long shadow over festivities in the region, with hopes dashed that a ceasefire agreement could be reached before the start of Ramadan.

The war was triggered by the October 7 attack by Hamas militants on southern Israel which resulted in about 1,160 deaths, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.

Israel's retaliatory offensive in Gaza, aimed at destroying Hamas, has killed at least 31,045 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-ruled territory.

The United Nations has warned that famine in the Palestinian territory is "almost inevitable" unless something changes in the war, with aid trickling in at levels far below the pre-war norm.