{ "success": true, "data": { "id": 1623299, "msgid": "ministry-of-religious-affairs-to-hold-isbat-session-tomorrow-for-determining-eid-al-fitr-and-1-shawwal-1447-h-1773845484", "date": "2026-03-18 20:45:05", "title": "Ministry of Religious Affairs to Hold Isbat Session Tomorrow for Determining Eid al-Fitr and 1 Shawwal 1447 H", "author": "", "source": "CNBC", "tags": "", "topic": "Social Policy", "summary": "The Indonesian Ministry of Religious Affairs will convene the Isbat session on 19 March 2026 to officially determine the date of Eid al-Fitr for 1 Shawwal 1447 H, based on crescent moon sightings, involving experts from BMKG, BRIN, and Islamic organisations. While Muhammadiyah has already set the date as 20 March using astronomical calculations, predictions from BRIN and BMKG suggest it may fall on 21 March due to insufficient hilal visibility criteria under MABIMS standards. This potential discrepancy highlights ongoing differences in religious date-setting methods between organisations like Muhammadiyah and the government, which could affect national celebrations.", "content": "

Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia - The determination of Eid al-Fitr on 1\nShawwal 1447 Hijriah, or Lebaran 2026, will soon be decided through the\nIsbat session held by the Ministry of Religious Affairs (Kemenag)\ntomorrow, Thursday (19\/3\/2026). The Isbat session is a routine\ngovernment agenda carried out at the end of Ramadan to establish the\nstart of 1 Shawwal. The determination is based on the results of hilal\nmonitoring. The session is scheduled to take place at the H.M. Rasjidi\nAuditorium, Ministry of Religious Affairs Office, starting at 16:00 WIB.\nThe Isbat session will involve various parties, from astronomy experts\nat BMKG, BRIN, planetariums, observatories, representatives of Islamic\ncommunity organisations, to other related agencies. The following is the\nsequence of the Isbat session implementation: 1. Seminar on hilal\nposition 2. Verification of rukyatul hilal reports from various regions\n3. Conduct of the Isbat session 4. Official announcement of the\ndetermination of 1 Shawwal 1447 H by the Minister of Religious Affairs\nPotential for a Different Lebaran 2026 A difference in the celebration\nof Eid al-Fitr is likely to occur, similar to the start of fasting.\nMuhammadiyah set 18 February 2026 for 1 Ramadan 1447 H, followed by the\ngovernment and NU the next day. A similar potential may also occur\nduring Lebaran. Muhammadiyah, through the Central Leadership Memorandum\nNumber 2\/MLM\/I.0\/E\/2025, has already decided that Eid al-Fitr will fall\non Friday, 20 March 2026. Meanwhile, based on the Hijriah calendar\nissued by Kemenag, 1 Shawwal 1447 H is set for Saturday, 21 March 2026.\nHowever, the government\u2019s official decision still awaits the results of\nthe Isbat session to be held tomorrow, Thursday. Schedules of\nMuhammadiyah & Predictions of NU, BMKG, BRIN As of now,\nMuhammadiyah, the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN), and\nthe Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) have provided\ntheir respective predictions, while the government is still awaiting the\nIsbat session results. Muhammadiyah Muhammadiyah is the organisation\nthat sets the Lebaran date earliest. Through the Central Leadership\nMemorandum on the determination of Ramadan, Shawwal, and Dhu al-Hijjah\n1447 H, the organisation sets 1 Shawwal 1447 H to fall on Friday, 20\nMarch 2026. This determination is carried out using the contemporary\nhakiki hisab method, referring to the Single Global Hijriah Calendar\n(KHGT). With this method, the start of the month is determined based on\nastronomical calculations without waiting for hilal observation. BRIN\nMeanwhile, BRIN predicts that Eid al-Fitr is likely to fall on Saturday,\n21 March 2026. BRIN researcher Thomas Djamaluddin explained that the\nhilal position at sunset on 19 March 2026 in the Southeast Asia region\ndoes not yet meet the criteria used by the government. These criteria\nrefer to the MABIMS standards (Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia,\nand Singapore), namely a minimum hilal height of 3 degrees and a minimum\nelongation of 6.4 degrees to be declared visible. Based on astronomical\ncalculations, the hilal position at maghrib on 19 March is estimated to\nstill be below those criteria, so there is a possibility that 1 Shawwal\nwill fall on 21 March 2026. BMKG BMKG has conveyed a similar view. This\nagency estimates that the height of the hilal at sunset on 19 March 2026\nwill be in the range of 0.91 degrees in Merauke to 3.13 degrees in\nSabang. Meanwhile, the geocentric elongation is estimated to be in the\nrange of 4.54 degrees to 6.1 degrees. These figures are considered not\nfully meeting the MABIMS criteria for determining the start of Shawwal\nmonth. BMKG also reminds that in the rukyat process, observers need to\nbe wary of the possibility of planets or bright stars near the moon that\ncould be mistaken for the hilal. NU Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) usually follows\nthe government\u2019s decision in determining the start of Shawwal. This is\nbecause NU uses the hilal rukyat method combined with hisab as a\ncalculation aid. Government The government will only set the official\nLebaran date through the Isbat session to be held on 19 March 2026 at\nthe Ministry of Religious Affairs Office, Jakarta. The session will\ninvolve astronomy experts, Islamic community organisations, and\nscientific institutions such as BMKG and BRIN. If the rukyat results\nindicate that the hilal does not meet visibility criteria, then Eid\nal-Fitr 2026 is most likely to fall on 21 March 2026. However, if the\nhilal is sighted, Lebaran could fall on 20 March 2026. Thus, the\npotential for differences in Lebaran determination is once again open,\nas has occurred several times in previous years in Indonesia.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/ministry-of-religious-affairs-to-hold-isbat-session-tomorrow-for-determining-eid-al-fitr-and-1-shawwal-1447-h-1773845484", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }