As the first long weekend of the year – the four-day Eid Al Fitr holiday is over now for the residents of the UAE; the next one is coming up in a couple of months, and this time it is expected to be a long holiday.
According to the official calendar of public holidays of the UAE, the next holiday will be on Arafah Day and Eid Al Adha, or the Feast of Sacrifice. According to the Islamic calendar, this will be a four-day holiday on Zul Hijjah from 9 to 12. However, this will fall right before the weekend, and the residents will get a break of up to six days. Likewise, other Islamic holidays will too depend on the moon sighting.
Besides, astronomy expert Ibrahim Al Jarwan earlier indicated in a video which was based on calculations that the Islamic month of ZulHijjah is anticipated to begin on Monday, June 19
As per Al Jarwan, chairman of the Board of Directors of the Emirates Astronomical Society, Eid Al Adha will fall on Wednesday, June 2, and Arafah Day, which is observed one day before Eid, will be June 27.
Considering these dates, the UAE holiday will be from Tuesday, June 27, to Friday, June 30. With the Saturday and Sunday weekend, this will summarise into a six-day break.
Moon-sighting committees in the Islamic world will meet again to decide the formal dates, and all Muslims shall be welcome to look out for the crescent moon.
Eid Al Adha, also known as the Feast of Sacrifice, is observed by offering special prayers. Muslims slaughter livestock – a goat, sheep, cows, or camels to follow the test of faith performed by Prophet Ibrahim.
The festival celebrates Prophet Ibrahim’s willingness to sacrifice his son based on Allah’s command. Before the sacrifice, Allah gave him a ram that the prophet slaughtered.
