Muslim pilgrims march past the Kaaba at the center of the holy al-Haram Mosque at the end of the first day of Ramadan March 23, 2023 in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. ABDEL GHANI BASHIR v AFP
Since 2019, the cacophony has been repeated at each start of Ramadan: Iran and Saudi Arabia, the respective leaders of the Shia world and the Sunni world, who were at odds at the time, set the start of Muslim fasting for a different date. But this year the clerics of Riyadh and Tehran have commissioned lunar observation – the The beginning of Ramadan is marked by the appearance of the first crescent moon in the sky – have agreed. Iranians and Saudis began fasting on Thursday, March 23, taking the entire Muslim world with them.
Politics is probably no stranger to this sudden sacred union. On March 10, from Beijing, the two powers announced their desire to resume diplomatic relations, which had been broken for seven years, marking the beginning of détente in the Middle East. The foreign ministers of both countries exchanged congratulations on the occasion and promised to meet soon to prepare the reopening of their embassies.
And visibility of the crescent new moon can vary from country to country, from village to village,” said Elie Al-Hindy, director of the Lebanese Adyan Foundation
The Cold War between Tehran and Riyadh, who have fought vicariously in Yemen as well as in Syria and Iraq in recent years, marked the last Ramadan. The holy month began one day apart in the two countries, and the end of the fast, marked by Eid-el-Fitr, did not always coincide. However, the method used to determine the beginning of the new lunar month (moon observation or astronomical calculation) can influence the choice of date. “And the visibility of the crescent of the new moon can vary from country to country, from village to village,” recalls Elie Al-Hindy, executive director of the Lebanese Adyan Foundation, which promotes religious pluralism.
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But politics also plays a role. “As the deal between Riyadh and Tehran is fresh, that factor may have come into play, Mr Al-Hindy judges. It’s a good bonding message. “Before 2019, it happened that the two countries started Ramadan staggered without any comment. But in recent years, the intensification of their geopolitical rivalries had given these differences an unmistakably political tone. They deepened sectarian divisions in mixed countries. In Lebanon, the majority of practicing Shias follow Tehran, while Sunnis follow Riyadh.
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