ISLAMABAD: Pakistan will celebrate the first day of Eid ul Fitr on Tuesday, May 3 as the Shawwal moon was not sighted in the country, the Central Ruet-e-Hilal Committee announced Sunday, Aaj News reported.

The meeting of the Ruet-e-Hilal Committee was held at the Ministry of Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony in Islamabad with Maulana Abdul Khabir Azad in the chair, while the zonal committees were meeting in their respective cities to sight the Shawwal crescent.

The committee announced that it did not receive any reports related to the sighting of the moon of Shawwal 1443 AH today,

"It was decided through consensus that Eid will be observed on May 3 across the country,” said Maulana Azad in a press conference after the moon was not sighted.

Earlier the zonal committees in Lahore and Karachi had announced that they were unable to sight the Shawwal moon and neither had they received any witnesses claiming the crescent was sighted in Punjab and Sindh, respectively.

The moon, however, could not be sighted anywhere in the country.

At the time of the sighting, the age of the moon was 17 hours, and according to the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD), the age of the moon must be 19 hours in order to sight it.

The department had also said that there are no chances of the Shawwal moon being sighted today.

Meanwhile, South Waziristan and Afghanistan are celebrating Eid today after the Shawwal moon was sighted in the area yesterday.