PESHAWAR: Northwestern areas of Pakistan will start observing Ramadan along with Saudi Arabia, despite the Pakistani government’s decision to commence fasting on Saturday.
Saudi Arabia’s Supreme Court announced on Thursday that Ramadan this year will start on Friday.
“After evaluating moon-sighting witnesses, the Ruet-e-Hilal Committee of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has announced first Ramadan will be observed tomorrow (Friday). God willing, tomorrow will be the first Ramadan. I congratulate you all on this sacred month,” Mufti Shahabuddin Popalzai of Masjid Qasim Ali Khan’s moon-sighting committee in Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, announced on Thursday evening.
Meanwhile, Pakistan’s Central Ruet-e-Hilal Committee, the body which announces the sighting of the new moon, decided that Ramadan in the country would begin on Saturday. After the committee’s meeting on Thursday, the Ministry of Religious Affairs issued a circular enforcing the decision.
It is a long-held tradition in Pakistan’s northwestern areas to follow Saudi Arabia with regard to the timing of fasting and Eid celebrations.
“People mostly follow Saudi Arabia to start Ramadan or observe Eid because the kingdom is known as the citadel of Islam,” Atif Wazir, a university student from North Waziristan, told Arab News.
He said people have already bought and prepared foods for suhoor, the predawn meal, and iftar, or fast-breaking meal, that is eaten every night after sunset.
Muhammad Hassan, a tribal elder from South Waziristan, said that villagers in the district were preparing to offer Tarawih prayers on Thursday.
Khan Muhammad, an Afghan refugee in Kohat district, told Arab News that other refugee families living on the outskirts of Peshawar in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province were also starting to observe their fast tomorrow.
“Our people will fast from Friday. We normally follow the Kingdom to start fasting because we have always had controversies over moon-sighting in Pakistan,” he said.
Muslims around the world use a lunar calendar to determine the dates of religious events and observances. As a result, Ramadan dates vary in different countries, usually by a day or two.
Pakistan’s northwestern areas start Ramadan with Saudi Arabia
https://arab.news/9ty3x
Pakistan’s northwestern areas start Ramadan with Saudi Arabia
- Saudi Arabia’s Supreme Court announced that Ramadan this year will start on Friday
- It is a long-held tradition in Pakistan’s tribal districts to follow Saudi Arabia’s Ramadan and Eid timings
Islamabad says surge in aircraft orders after India standoff could end IMF reliance
- Pakistani jets came into the limelight after Islamabad claimed to have shot down six Indian aircraft during a standoff in May last year
- Many countries have since stepped up engagement with Pakistan, while others have proposed learning from PAF’s multi-domain capabilities
ISLAMABAD: Defense Minister Khawaja Asif on Tuesday said Pakistan has witnessed a surge in aircraft orders after a four-day military standoff with India last year and, if materialized, they could end the country’s reliance on the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The statement came hours after a high-level Bangladeshi defense delegation met Pakistan’s Air Chief Marshal Zaheer Ahmed Baber Sidhu to discuss a potential sale of JF-17 Thunder aircraft, a multi-role fighter jointly developed by China and Pakistan that has become the backbone of the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) over the past decade.
Fighter jets used by Pakistan came into the limelight after Islamabad claimed to have shot down six Indian aircraft, including French-made Rafale jets, during the military conflict with India in May last year. India acknowledged losses in the aerial combat but did not specify a number.
Many countries have since stepped up defense engagement with Pakistan, while delegations from multiple other nations have proposed learning from Pakistan Air Force’s multi-domain air warfare capabilities that successfully advanced Chinese military technology performs against Western hardware.
“Right now, the number of orders we are receiving after reaching this point is significant because our aircraft have been tested,” Defense Minister Asif told a Pakistan’s Geo News channel.
“We are receiving those orders, and it is possible that after six months we may not even need the IMF.”
Pakistan markets the Chinese co-developed JF-17 as a lower-cost multi-role fighter and has positioned itself as a supplier able to offer aircraft, training and maintenance outside Western supply chains.
“I am saying this to you with full confidence,” Asif continued. “If, after six months, all these orders materialize, we will not need the IMF.”
Pakistan has repeatedly turned to the IMF for financial assistance to stabilize its economy. These loans come with strict conditions including fiscal reforms, subsidy cuts and measures to increase revenue that Pakistan must implement to secure disbursements.
In Sept. 2024, the IMF approved a $7 billion bailout for Pakistan under its Extended Fund Facility (EFF) program and a separate $1.4 billion loan under its climate resilience fund in May 2025, aimed at strengthening the country’s economic and climate resilience.
Pakistan has long been striving to expand defense exports by leveraging its decades of counter-insurgency experience and a domestic industry that produces aircraft, armored vehicles, munitions and other equipment.
The South Asian country reached a deal worth over $4 billion to sell military equipment to the Libyan National Army, Reuters report last month, citing Pakistani officials. The deal, one of Pakistan’s largest-ever weapons sales, included the sale of 16 JF-17 fighter jets and 12 Super Mushak trainer aircraft for basic pilot training.
