Jakarta, Thekabarnews.com—The Religious Affairs Ministry (Kemenag) Rukyat Team says that astronomical calculations (hisab) show that the first day of Ramadan 1447 Hijriyah will be Thursday, February 19, 2026. The people in charge want to make it clear that this number is only a rough guess.
A member of Kemenag’s Rukyatul Hilal Team, Cecep Nurwendaya, gave the results during a meeting at Hotel Borobudur in Central Jakarta. He said that before the government officially announces the start of Ramadan through the isbat session, the hisab result, which is informative, must be confirmed by moon sighting (rukyat). According to the MABIMS Imkanur Rukyat rules, 1 Ramadan 1447 H falls on February 19, 2026. This is just a guess.
“The isbat session tonight will talk about rukyat confirmation,” Cecep added.
Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore’s religious leaders came up with the MABIMS criteria, which Indonesia follows. The Bali 2023 agreement for the crescent moon says that it must be at least 6.4 degrees geocentric and 3 degrees above the horizon.
Cecep says that Indonesia’s current hilal position doesn’t meet these requirements. The crescent must rise above a certain level for it to be the start of a new Hijri month.
“You have to meet both the altitude and elongation requirements at the same time,” he said.
Cecep said that the agreement only applies to MABIMS member countries, even though some areas, like parts of the Americas, may have already met the requirements. The crescent moon isn’t visible in Indonesia because it is below the minimum visibility level.
Secretary General of the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI), Amirsyah Tambunan, also told people to be careful if the start date of Ramadan changes. He backed up his claim by saying that Imam Al-Ghazali said that ijtihad includes both hisab and rukyat. Amirsyah says that wisdom and mutual tolerance are at the top of the list.
The government has concluded the Isbat Session. During the session, the date of Ramadan 1447 Hijriah/2026 was decided. Muslim people have to be informed about the fasting month of 2026’s timing.
In a statement made by the Religious Affairs Minister Nasaruddin Umar in Jakarta on Tuesday, February 17, it was announced that 1 Ramadan 1447 Hijri/2026 will be observed on Thursday, February 19, 2026, due to the lack of a visible crescent moon and other calculating findings.
“1 Ramadan 1447 Hijri/2026 will be declared on Thursday, February 19, 2026,” the minister said.
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