The Ruet-i-Hilal Committee Tuesday evening announced that the Ramazan moon has been sighted in the country and the first of the holy month will fall on Wednesday (today). Addressing a press conference after a meeting of the committee in Peshawar, Central Ruet-i-Hilal Committee Chairman Maulana Abdul Khabir Azad said the crescent was sighted in Karachi, Lahore, Malakand and other areas. “The first day of fasting in Ramazan will be on April 14, Wednesday,” he said, adding that crowds in various areas of the country have spotted the moon. The unprecedented meeting of the Ruet-i-Hilal Committee was held in Peshawar after a gap of 17 years in order to develop consensus about the start of the holy month of Ramazan across the country the same day and ensure that no complaints about the sighting of the crescent surface. Maulana Azad had told a press conference last week that Mufti Shahabuddin Popalzai, who heads the local unofficial moon-sighting committee at the historic Qasim Ali Khan Mosque in Peshawar, would extend full cooperation to the central Ruet body. Although Popalzai still headed a separate meeting of his unofficial committee on Tuesday, he too announced that the first Ramazan will be on Wednesday. Maulana Azad said the moon sighting announcement made from Peshawar has sent a ‘message of unity’ for the country, adding that the committee had held meetings with ulema from across Pakistan to create consensus for three months. “It is a moment of blessing that the entire nation will fast together,” he said. President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden on Monday marked the beginning of the holy month of Ramazan in the US. “Jill and I send our warmest greetings and best wishes to Muslim communities in the United States and around the world. Ramazan Kareem,” said Biden in a statement. “As many of our fellow Americans begin fasting tomorrow, we are reminded of how difficult this year has been. In this pandemic, friends and loved ones cannot yet gather together in celebration and congregation, and far too many families will sit down for iftar with loved ones missing,” said the statement, referring to the meal eaten by Muslims after sunset during Ramazan.The president praised the contributions of Muslim Americans to the country, who he said are creating jobs as entrepreneurs and business owners, risking their lives as first responders, teaching in schools as well as fighting Covid-19. But Biden said Muslim Americans continue to be targeted by bullying, bigotry and hate crimes and his administration will work to protect the rights and safety of all people. “This prejudice and these attacks are wrong. They are unacceptable. And they must stop. No one in America should ever live in fear of expressing his or her faith,” he said. Meanwhile, Ambassador of Japan to Pakistan Matsuda Kuninori on Tuesday extended his best wishes to the people of Pakistan upon the start of the holy month of Ramazan.