The UAE officially announced that March 30 will mark the beginning of the Eid al-Fitr 2025 holiday. The Shawwal Moon-sighting Committee, formed under the UAE Council for Fatwa, confirmed that the Shawwal crescent moon for the year 1446 AH was sighted on the evening of Saturday, March 29, 2025, marking the beginning of Eid.
March 30 will mark the beginning of the month of Shawwal and the conclusion of Ramadan, giving UAE residents and citizens an extended holiday from March 29 until April 1, when adding the weekend.
Eid al-Fitr is a special occasion for Muslims and is a time for celebration with family and loved ones. It marks the end of the month of Ramadan, a period of month-long fasting for Muslims around the world, and the start of Shawwal, the tenth month in the Islamic calendar. Notably, Eid al-Fitr is among the two main holidays in Islam, the other being Eid al-Adha.
UAE deploys AI-powered drones to sight the Shawwal crescent
This year, the UAE Council for Fatwa is using AI-powered drones to sight the Shawwal crescent moon for the year 1446 AH, underscoring the country’s leadership in adopting innovative technological solutions for monitoring and observation. The council is the first in the world to utilise this advanced technology for moon sighting, having employed it earlier this year to observe the Ramadan crescent.
In a significant technological advancement, several drones were deployed from Al-Khatim Astronomical Observatory, which are equipped with high-precision lenses that rose more than 300 metres above ground, directed toward the location of the moon based on precise astronomical calculations. This approach, which the council is deploying for the second consecutive time, aims to overcome challenges that may obstruct visual sighting and ensure the atmospheric clarity needed for accurate observation.
Additionally, innovative AI-powered technologies will be used to analyse images, process data and determine the location of the crescent’s birth and the possibility of its visibility with precision.
The use of AI-powered drones extends the concept of direct visual observation, which remains the primary method for confirming the sighting of the crescent moon, following the Prophet Muhammad’s (peace be upon him) saying, “Do not fast unless you see the crescent (of Ramadan), and do not give up fasting till you see the crescent (of Shawwal), but if the sky is overcast (if you cannot see it), then act on estimation.”
UAE federal government holiday
Earlier this month, the Federal Authority for Government Human Resources (FAHR) in the UAE announced that the Eid al-Fitr 2025 holiday for the federal government sector will be from Shawwal 1st to 3rd 1446 AH, with work resuming on Shawwal 4th, meaning the holiday will extend from March 30, to April 1.
UAE private sector
The Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MoHRE) in the UAE announced that March 30 to April 1 will be a paid holiday for all private-sector employees across the country on the occasion of Eid al-Fitr.
Read| Eid al-Fitr 2025: Holiday dates announced in UAE, Saudi Arabia, other GCC states
Dubai Government
The Dubai Government Human Resources Department (DGHR) also released a circular regarding the Eid al-Fitr 2025 holidays in Dubai. The announcement details that all activities across entities, departments, and institutions associated with the Dubai government will be paused from Shawwal 1 to 3. Official operations will recommence on the 4th of Shawwal.
Earlier, the International Astronomical Center announced that “sighting the crescent moon on that day (March 29) is impossible from the eastern part of the world, and it is not possible from the rest of the Arab and Islamic world using all observation methods, including the naked eye, telescopes and astronomical photography technology.”
The center added that the Shawwal crescent moon would be visible by telescope from the central and northern parts of the Americas. Even with a telescope, sighting the crescent moon with the naked eye is very difficult from the eastern part of the Americas. The crescent moon can only be seen with the naked eye from the Pacific Ocean to the western United States.
