Saudi Arabia has announced the official date for beginning of the Ramadan fasting month.

The country regarded as the birthplace of Islam, Saudi Arabia has announced that the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan will begin on Saturday, May 27. This announcement was made on Thursday, May 25 by the state house. Ramadan lasts 29 to 30 days based on the visual sightings of the crescent moon.

The beginning and end of Islamic months are determined by the sighting of the new moon. The mufti which is Lebanon’s top Islamic authority, said Ramadan would also begin in the country on Saturday, May 27, and a similar statement was made by officials in Iraq’s Muslim Sunni minority.

In Nigeria, the President of the Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, Sultan Saad Abubakar, asked Muslims to look out for the new moon from Friday, May 26.

Muslims have to abstain from eating, drinking and smoking from dawn to sunset. Fasting is one of Islam’s five pillars, alongside declaration of monotheism, prayer five times a day, alms-giving, and the pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia.