Oman first in GCC to announce start of Ramadan 2026

Moon-sighting committee says crescent will be astronomically impossible to see on Feb. 17

By Abdullahi Yusuf

Oman has announced that the holy month of Ramadan will begin on Thursday, Feb. 19, 2026, becoming the first Gulf Cooperation Council country to formally declare the start date.

The Sultanate’s Main Committee for Moon Sighting said astronomical calculations show that the crescent moon marking the beginning of Ramadan will set before or at sunset on Tuesday, Feb. 17, corresponding to Shaaban 29, 1447 AH, in all governorates of the country, making a sighting that evening impossible.

In a statement, the committee said that because astronomical data confirms the impossibility of observing the crescent on that date, Wednesday, Feb. 18, will complete the month of Shaaban, and Thursday, Feb. 19, will mark the first day of Ramadan.

The announcement comes ahead of traditional crescent-sighting observations scheduled in many Muslim-majority countries after Maghrib prayers on Feb. 17.

In the United Arab Emirates, the Sharjah Academy for Astronomy, Space Sciences and Technology at the University of Sharjah issued a similar forecast, saying the Ramadan crescent would not be visible on Feb. 17 even with advanced telescopes, not only in the UAE but across much of the Islamic world.

The academy said astronomical models indicate Ramadan is expected to begin on Feb. 19.

Ramadan, the ninth month of the Islamic lunar calendar, begins with the sighting of the crescent moon and is observed by Muslims worldwide as a month of fasting, prayer and reflection.

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