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Indonesia to commence Ramadan on June 18

Xinhua, June 16, 2015 Adjust font size:

Indonesia, hosting the world's largest Muslim population, to commence the fasting month of Ramadan on June 18 after conducting astronomic observations.

The decision to commence the fasting month on that day was announced by Religious Affairs Minister Lukman Hakim Saifuddin in an Itsbat assembly held by the ministry to study results of astronomy observations carried out by several parties to identify the hilal, the phenomenon that marks the end of the month.

"The results said that none of the observers saw the hilal. Due to that, attendants of the Itsbat assembly agreed to complete the Sya'ban month into 30 days, making the Ramadan month falls on June 18," the minister told a press conference held on the sidelines of the itsbat assembly.

Besides hilal observers from across the nation, the assembly was also attended by representatives of Muslim organizations. Endi