Ramadan lanterns in El-Hussein neighbourhood (Photo: Mai Shaheen)
The holy month of Ramadan will comprise only 29 days this year, the director of Egypt’s National Research Institute of Astronomy and Geophysics, Hatem Auda, has said.
Although the Muslim holy month lasts 30 days every year, Auda said in comments reported by state news agency MENA that astronomical examination has revealed it will be one day shorter this time.
According to the lunar Islamic calendar, the last day of Ramadan will fall on 27 July and the first day of Eid Al-Fitr — the holiday celebrating the end of the fasting period — will commence on 28 July.
Pursuant to Islamic doctrine, Muslims fast from dawn until dusk for a month during Ramadan.
Ramadan comes roughly 10 days earlier every year, with noon-time temperatures reaching up to 40 degrees in the summertime in Egypt.
Daylight saving time, which was recently re-applied in Egypt, has been suspended for the duration of the month of fasting. Standard time in Egypt is GMT (UTC) + 2 and GMT + 3 during daylight saving time.
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