Overview
- The Ruet-e-Hilal Research Council says Shaban 1447 AH in Pakistan is expected to begin on Wednesday, January 21, after completing 30 days of Rajab.
- Council Secretary General Khalid Ijaz Mufti reports the new moon is born at 12:52am PST on the night of January 18–19, leaving its age under 18 hours at sunset on January 19.
- City-by-city calculations show a sunset–moonset gap of 29–33 minutes across Pakistan, short of the roughly 40 minutes commonly required for visibility.
- The council concludes the crescent will not be observable on January 19 even under clear skies using the naked eye, binoculars, or a telescope.
- The Central Ruet-e-Hilal Committee will issue the formal religious announcement, while the council’s tentative projections place Ramadan around February 19 and Eidul Fitr around March 21; separately, the UAE has set Tuesday, January 20, as the first day of Shaban.