ASIATODAY.ID, JAKARTA – The Government of the Republic of Indonesia has officially declared that 1 Ramadan 1447 AH/2026 CE will fall on Thursday, February 19, 2026.
The decision was reached during the Isbat session to determine the beginning of Ramadan 1447 AH, chaired by Minister of Religious Affairs Nasaruddin Umar at Hotel Borobudur Jakarta on Tuesday, February 17, 2026.
“The Isbat session has agreed that 1 Ramadan 1447 Hijri falls on Thursday, February 19, 2026,” the Minister announced at a press conference following the meeting.
The deliberation referred to astronomical calculations (hisab) and crescent moon sighting observations (rukyat) conducted by the Ministry’s Hisab and Rukyat Team in coordination with Islamic organizations.
These findings were confirmed by observers stationed at no fewer than 96 observation points across Indonesia.
According to the Minister, astronomical data indicated that the crescent moon (hilal) altitude across the territory of the Republic of Indonesia remained below the horizon, ranging from -2° 24′ 43″ (-2.41°) to -0° 55′ 41″ (-0.93°). Meanwhile, the elongation angle ranged between 0° 56′ 23″ (0.94°) and 1° 53′ 36″ (1.89°).
This means that, based on astronomical calculations, the crescent moon’s position did not meet the MABIMS visibility criteria—established by the Ministers of Religious Affairs of Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore—which require a minimum altitude of 3° and a minimum elongation angle of 6.4°.
“Therefore, not only does it fail to meet the imkan rukyat (minimum visibility) criteria, but astronomically the crescent moon was not possible to observe. Hence, today’s data do not fulfill the MABIMS visibility criteria,” the Minister stated.
As a second consideration, the calculation results were corroborated by field reports from official moon-sighting teams deployed by the Ministry of Religious Affairs. This year, observations were conducted at 96 locations across all provinces of Indonesia.
“There were no reports of crescent moon sightings from any observation point. Even in other Muslim-majority countries, none have met the imkan rukyat criteria, and the Turkish version of the Global Hijri Calendar also does not commence Ramadan tomorrow,” he added.
“Based on the astronomical calculations and the absence of confirmed sightings, the Isbat session agreed that 1 Ramadan 1447 Hijri falls on Thursday, February 19, 2026,” he reaffirmed.
The Minister expressed hope that the decision would enable Muslims throughout Indonesia to begin fasting simultaneously.
“May this moment serve as a symbol of unity among Muslims and reflect our national solidarity as we move toward a better future,” he said.
He also urged mutual respect should differences arise in determining the start of Ramadan.
“If there are segments of the Muslim community who hold different views regarding the beginning of Ramadan, we appeal that these differences do not lead to division. Let diversity remain a valuable mosaic of the Indonesian nation. We have long lived with differences, yet remained strong in unity,” he concluded.
Accompanying the Minister were Deputy Minister of Religious Affairs Romo Syafi’i, Chair of Commission VIII of the House of Representatives Marwan Dasopang, Chairman of the Indonesian Ulema Council Anwar Iskandar, and Director General of Islamic Community Guidance Abu Rokhmad.
The Isbat session was also attended by leaders of Islamic organizations, Islamic astronomy experts and academics, as well as representatives from the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG), the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN), the Geospatial Information Agency, Jakarta Planetarium, and members of the Ministry’s Hisab and Rukyat Team. (Silvia Andriani)
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