The announcement is set to come in the next hours
Ibrahim Syed, from the Liverpool Region Mosque Network
The world’s Muslim community is awaiting the announcement of Eid al-Adha, one of the most important dates in the Islamic calendar, which is expected to happen this weekend. Eid al-Adha is one of two Eid celebrations which takes place every lunar year and follows the conclusion of the end of the yearly Hajj pilgrimage, is a very special occasion for Muslims everywhere, including those living in Merseyside.
The starting dates for many of the most important dates in the Islamic calendar are determined by a moon-sighting committee in Saudi Arabia. The crescent moon, which marks the start of the Islamic month, could be visible on the evening of May 17, astronomers say, though the exact date will depend on confirmed sightings.
If the moon is seen then Dhul Hijjah – the final month of the Islamic calendar – would begin on May 18, placing Eid Al-Adha on or around May 27.
A day before Eid al-Adha, is the day of Arafat, which sees many Muslims fasting in anticipation for the start of the festival. Known as the Feast of Sacrifice, Eid al-Adha commemorates Ibrahim’s preparation to sacrifice his son Ishmael on Allah’s command, before a ram was provided for the sacrifice instead.
The Hajj pilgrimage sees Muslims from all over the world visit Mecca, the holiest city in Islam, which is located in the Sirāt Mountains in Saudi Arabia. In Islam it is mandatory that all Muslims must visit the religious site at least once in their lifetimes.
The first slim crescent of the new moon that determines Dhul Hijjah and Eid ul Adha (Image: Noor TV/Zahid Nawaz)
One person who has made that pilgrimage already is Ibrahim Syed who works as a co-ordinator at the Liverpool Region Mosque Network. Ibrahim visited Mecca back in 2012 with his mum, Rabia.
He told the ECHO: “So there’s five pillars (of Islam). One is the Shahada which is the testimony of faith in one God and the messengers and Muhammad is the final messenger. And the second one is the Salah which is the daily five prayers at the five times specified during the day. And the third is the fasting during Ramadan.
“The fourth is performing of the Hajj once a lifetime if you can afford it. And the fifth is the paying of Zakat which is giving alms 2.5% of your savings every year in charity.
“It felt very dutiful that I could take my mum (on Hajj). I remember coming back and giving an assembly on it explaining how people are equal, everybody’s there, you’ve got no differentiation between people because everybody’s wearing the same white sheets.”
Eid 2025 celebrations at Merseyside Caribbean Community Centre in Toxteth pictured Ghana Malik and family.(Image: Colin Lane)
Ibrahim, 42, added: “You’ve got no status and everybody’s equal and that really stood out for me because it represented equality and how everybody is the same, it doesn’t matter how wealthy you are, what your job title is, what your status is.
“Malcolm X talks about that, how that experience really changed him because he went there and, having experienced racism in America, he went to the Hajj and then he came back and he had a completely different perspective about equality of people from different backgrounds.
“I think that Eid is the main attraction, because it’s a time when people give a lot of charity. An animal is sacrificed and that meat is distributed to poor people, to family members and to your own family. That is to commemorate when Abraham was going to sacrifice his son Ishmael and it was replaced with an animal, a ram. It’s very similar to the Jewish story actually.”
