JEDDAH: The Saudi Supreme Court has urged any person who sees the Shawwal crescent with the naked eye or through telescopes to report it to the nearest court and record his statement. He could also contact the nearest center to help him get to the court.
“In accordance with the Supreme Court’s decision number 108 on May 15 that declared the beginning of the month of Ramadan on May 17, the court asks Muslims all over Saudi Arabia to monitor the Shawwal crescent of the Hijri year of 1439 on Thursday, June 14,” the court’s statement said.
“The Supreme Court asks those who have the ability to monitor to do so and join the committees formed in the regions for the matter. Such participation will be rewarded by God since it comes as a cooperation in righteousness and piety and benefits all Muslims.”
The announcement is required to be broadcasted again and publicized on June 13 and 14 according to the Umm Al-Qura Calendar.
Saudi Arabia’s Supreme Court calls on Muslims to sight Shawwal crescent
Saudi Arabia’s Supreme Court calls on Muslims to sight Shawwal crescent
- “In accordance with the Supreme Court’s decision number 108 on May 15 that declared the beginning of Ramadan on May 17, the court asks Muslims all over Saudi Arabia to monitor the Shawwal crescent on Thursday, June 14”
Saudi Arabia launches initiative to reroute Gulf cargo to Red Sea ports
- The initiative comes as shipping through the Strait of Hormuz has been severely disrupted by the widening conflict in the region
- Since the US and Israel struck Iran last month, Tehran has moved to restrict passage through the waterway
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia has launched an initiative to redirect shipping from ports in the Arabian Gulf to its Red Sea ports amid the ongoing US-Israel-Iran war.
Transport Minister Saleh Al-Jasser, who also chairs the Saudi Ports Authority (Mawani), launched the Logistics Corridors Initiative alongside Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority Governor Suhail Abanmi, Mawani President Suliman Al-Mazroua, and other officials, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
The initiative will establish dedicated operational corridors to receive containers and cargo redirected from ports in the Kingdom's Eastern Region and other Gulf Cooperation Council states to Jeddah Islamic Port and other Red Sea coast ports.
Al-Jasser said the Kingdom was committed to ensuring supply-chain stability and the smooth flow of goods through global trade routes. Jeddah Islamic Port and other west coast ports, he added, were already playing a key role in accommodating shipments redirected from the east, while also linking Gulf cargo to regional and international markets.
The initiative comes as shipping through the Strait of Hormuz has been severely disrupted by the widening conflict in the region. Iran has long threatened to close the strait — the world's most critical oil and gas chokepoint, through which roughly a fifth of global oil supplies pass — in the event of a war.
Since the US and Israel struck Iran last month, Tehran has moved to restrict passage through the waterway, sending freight rates soaring and forcing shipping companies to seek alternative routes.
Saudi Arabia's Red Sea ports offer a viable bypass, connecting Gulf cargo to global markets without passing through the strait.
