The moon was sighted in Cape Town on Wednesday evening, the Crescent Observers Society announced live on VOC. The new crescent was also spotted in Nelspruit, Durban, Johannesburg and Pretoria.

“Its been confirmed with every organisation in South Africa. Tonight (Wednesday) will be the first Taraweeh and tomorrow (Thursday) will be the first day of fasting,” said hakim Shaykh Siraj Hendricks.

Following a dua by COS president Haji Omar Gabier, Muslim Judicial Council (MJC) deputy president Shaykh Riad Fataar wished all Muslims a prosperous Ramadan.

“To the Muslims of  Cape Town, what has come to you is the madrassa of Sabr, the madrasa of dua, the madrassa of Quran and the madrassa of taqwa. Allah (swt) has granted us an opportunity of a lifetime to experience this Ramadan. This is an opportunity to revive that imaan. Let’s show the world how Muslims rejoice during this time. Allah has opened the doors to Jannah. May this be the best Ramadan, ameen.”

Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia’s Supreme Court has announced that the first day of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan will be Thursday, Al Arabiya News Channel reported. The Supreme Court of Saudi Arabia asked citizens to keep an eye out for the crescent moon on Tuesday, which, if sighted, will mark the beginning of the month of Ramadan on Wednesday. If the crescent is not sighted on Tuesday, fasting will begin Thursday.

Elsewhere in the Gulf, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar also announced a Thursday start for Ramadan. The government of Yemen, exiled in Saudi Arabia because of war in their homeland, similarly said the holy month would begin Thursday in their country. And in Amman, Jordanian religious authorities said Ramadan would begin there on Thursday.

More than 1.5 billion Muslims around the world will mark the month, during which believers abstain from eating, drinking, smoking and having sex from dawn until sunset. Muslims also try to avoid evil thoughts and deeds. Ramadan is sacred to Muslims because it is the month in which the sacred Quran was revealed to the Prophet Mohammed (pbuh). The month concludes with the Eid al-Fitr festival. VOC/Al Arabiya