Ministry of Religious Affairs to Hold Isbat Session for Determining 1 Syawal Tonight
The Ministry of Religious Affairs has scheduled the Isbat session to determine the start of Syawal 1447 Hijriah. The event will take place on Thursday, 19 March 2026, at 7:00 PM WIB.
“The session is closed to the public,” stated Thobil Al Asyhar, Head of the Public Relations Bureau of the Ministry of Religious Affairs, via WhatsApp message on Thursday, 19 March 2026.
Information regarding the determination of 1 Syawal will be available to the public during the press conference following the Isbat session.
The agenda can be viewed via live broadcast on the YouTube channel of Ditjen Bimas Islam TV and Kemenag, as well as on the TikTok and Instagram platforms of Bimas Islam.
“The press conference for the determination of 1 Syawal will be held at 7:25 PM WIB tonight,” said Thoyib.
The Isbat session will be held at the H.M. Rasjidi Auditorium, Jalan Mohammad Husni Thamrin, Ministry of Religious Affairs Office, Central Jakarta.
Director General of Islamic Community Guidance Abu Rokhmad explained that the Isbat session is the government’s mechanism for determining the start of months in the Hijriah calendar, particularly Ramadan, Syawal, and Zulhijah.
“As usual, the Isbat session begins with a seminar presenting the crescent moon position by the Ministry of Religious Affairs’ Hisab Rukyat Team,” said Abu, as quoted from the Ministry of Religious Affairs’ official website on Thursday.
After the seminar, the next activity is to hold a closed session to discuss the results of rukyatul hilal from various regions, before finally announcing it to the public.
He explained that based on astronomical calculations (hisab), on the day of rukyat or 29 Ramadan 1447 Hijriah, which coincides with today, the height of the crescent moon across all regions of Indonesia is above the horizon, ranging from 0°54’27’’ to 3°7’52’’. Meanwhile, the elongation angle of the crescent moon ranges from 4°32’40’’ to 6°06’11’’.
Abu continued that all hisab systems indicate that the conjunction leading to Syawal 1447 H occurred on 19 March 2026 around 8:23 AM WIB this morning. However, the determination of the start of Syawal still awaits the results of rukyatul hilal conducted in various regions of Indonesia.
In addition, the Ministry of Religious Affairs is monitoring the crescent moon at 117 locations spread across Indonesia.
This observation is carried out by the Ministry of Religious Affairs’ regional offices together with district/city offices, Religious Courts, Islamic community organisations, and related agencies in the regions.
The Isbat session will also be attended by other parties such as representatives of friendly country ambassadors, the Chair of Commission VIII of the DPR, the Supreme Court, the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI), the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG), and the Geospatial Information Agency (BIG).
Furthermore, the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN), Bosscha of Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB), Planetarium, as well as falak experts from Islamic community organisations, and members of the Ministry of Religious Affairs’ Hisab Rukyat Team.