The majority of Muslims around the world are to gather in mosques on Monday for morning prayers on the first day of the holy month.
In the UAE, people worshipped early in the morning to mark the start of the month-long fast – after the Moon-sighting committee on Sunday night announced the start of Ramadan.
About 1.9 billion worshippers mark the holy month with fasting and prayers. Some countries, including the Philippines and Morocco, announced the Moon was not visible the previous evening and so fasting would begin on Tuesday.
Hadeer Hegazy, 19, lives in Al Ain and shared her excitement with The National.
This is a month of peace and I believe peace is profound and important in Islam
Mohammed Jahirul Islam
“This Ramadan is so special to me because my family and I will be spending it with a relative coming to visit from Egypt," said the cyber security student from Egypt.
Ms Hegazy’s goal this year is to complete reading the Quran at least once.
“I always look forward to the spiritual and positive vibes with my family and friends gathering," she said.
“Early morning my family and I prepare a pre-dawn suhoor meal of traditional Egyptian food like fava beans and make sure to eat yoghurt to control our thirst throughout the day."
With Ms Hegazy attending classes during Ramadan, she is relieved that study hours are shortened.
“I’m glad my university shortened class timings so [that] we will finish early and get to go home, rest and prepare for iftar," she added.
Ramadan is believed to be the month the Quran was revealed to the Prophet Mohammed.
Fasting during the holy month is one of the five pillars of Islam and is mandatory for all Muslims who are in good health.
Mohammed Jahirul Islam, 50 and from Bangladesh, is looking forward to Ramadan as it represents peace and solitude.
“This is a month of peace and I believe peace is profound and important in Islam," Mr Islam said.
“I always pray the first prayer of the day at the mosque and I will make sure to pray all the other prayers at the mosque, too.
“I prepared for Ramadan by taking care of myself physically and buying new clothes."
Mahmoud Khalifa, 21, is an industrial engineer who enjoys attending Fajr prayer with his family at the mosque as it also gives him “a sense of peace".
“Being in the company of fellow worshippers strengthens my connection to my faith and I discover my inner peace through participating in group prayers," Mr Khalifa told The National.
“I also like to go pray the sunnah [optional] and extra prayers, so I can get used to it," he said.
“My goal this Ramadan is to give to charity, read the Quran daily, go to the taraweeh, spend time with my family and commit to not miss any of the five prayers."
Mr Khalifa follows a certain timetable during Ramadan to help through fasting and plans to have suhoor by about 4am.
“I like staying in the mosque after each prayer to read the Quran, eat healthy food and stay hydrated in non-fasting hours," he added.
"I also make sure to rest and spend my time doing something useful."
Hatam Alawady, 47, works at Al Ain Hospital and is committed to get closer to God this Ramadan.
“This Ramadan I am focusing and committed to get closer to God and to ask for His forgiveness," he said.
“I want to share my blessings and give back to people. Especially in Ramadan, I like to pray all the prayers in their dedicated timings.
“I arrange my time in Ramadan accordingly with my working hours and make sure to eat light food for suhoor such as cucumber, yoghurt and milk."
Muslims end their daily fast at sunset, before many begin taraweeh prayers, an additional extended evening prayer performed after isha.
Taraweeh are traditionally followed by social gatherings that last into the night.
This year, Muslims in the UAE will begin the month by fasting for about 13 hours and 52 minutes.
UAE President Sheikh Mohamed posted a Ramadan message on social media to mark the start of Ramadan.
“May this period of reflection and prayer bring us closer together and strengthen our bonds of unity and compassion. I wish you a blessed Ramadan filled with peace, harmony and spiritual growth," Sheikh Mohamed wrote on X.
Watch: UAE Ramadan working hours announced
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Engine: 3.8-litre V6
Power: 295hp at 6,000rpm
Torque: 355Nm at 5,200rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.7L/100km
Price: Dh179,999-plus
On sale: now
Key findings of Jenkins report
- Founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan al Banna, "accepted the political utility of violence"
- Views of key Muslim Brotherhood ideologue, Sayyid Qutb, have “consistently been understood” as permitting “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” and “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
- Muslim Brotherhood at all levels has repeatedly defended Hamas attacks against Israel, including the use of suicide bombers and the killing of civilians.
- Laying out the report in the House of Commons, David Cameron told MPs: "The main findings of the review support the conclusion that membership of, association with, or influence by the Muslim Brotherhood should be considered as a possible indicator of extremism."
Classification of skills
A worker is categorised as skilled by the MOHRE based on nine levels given in the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO) issued by the International Labour Organisation.
A skilled worker would be someone at a professional level (levels 1 – 5) which includes managers, professionals, technicians and associate professionals, clerical support workers, and service and sales workers.
The worker must also have an attested educational certificate higher than secondary or an equivalent certification, and earn a monthly salary of at least Dh4,000.
How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
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Director: Daniel Espinosa
Stars: Jared Leto, Matt Smith, Adria Arjona
Rating: 2/5
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UAE v Gibraltar
What: International friendly
When: 7pm kick off
Where: Rugby Park, Dubai Sports City
Admission: Free
Online: The match will be broadcast live on Dubai Exiles’ Facebook page
UAE squad: Lucas Waddington (Dubai Exiles), Gio Fourie (Exiles), Craig Nutt (Abu Dhabi Harlequins), Phil Brady (Harlequins), Daniel Perry (Dubai Hurricanes), Esekaia Dranibota (Harlequins), Matt Mills (Exiles), Jaen Botes (Exiles), Kristian Stinson (Exiles), Murray Reason (Abu Dhabi Saracens), Dave Knight (Hurricanes), Ross Samson (Jebel Ali Dragons), DuRandt Gerber (Exiles), Saki Naisau (Dragons), Andrew Powell (Hurricanes), Emosi Vacanau (Harlequins), Niko Volavola (Dragons), Matt Richards (Dragons), Luke Stevenson (Harlequins), Josh Ives (Dubai Sports City Eagles), Sean Stevens (Saracens), Thinus Steyn (Exiles)
Desert Warrior
Starring: Anthony Mackie, Aiysha Hart, Ben Kingsley
Director: Rupert Wyatt
Rating: 3/5
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What can you do?
Document everything immediately; including dates, times, locations and witnesses
Seek professional advice from a legal expert
You can report an incident to HR or an immediate supervisor
You can use the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation’s dedicated hotline
In criminal cases, you can contact the police for additional support
Company Fact Box
Company name/date started: Abwaab Technologies / September 2019
Founders: Hamdi Tabbaa, co-founder and CEO. Hussein Alsarabi, co-founder and CTO
Based: Amman, Jordan
Sector: Education Technology
Size (employees/revenue): Total team size: 65. Full-time employees: 25. Revenue undisclosed
Stage: early-stage startup
Investors: Adam Tech Ventures, Endure Capital, Equitrust, the World Bank-backed Innovative Startups SMEs Fund, a London investment fund, a number of former and current executives from Uber and Netflix, among others.
Uefa Nations League: How it works
The Uefa Nations League, introduced last year, has reached its final stage, to be played over five days in northern Portugal. The format of its closing tournament is compact, spread over two semi-finals, with the first, Portugal versus Switzerland in Porto on Wednesday evening, and the second, England against the Netherlands, in Guimaraes, on Thursday.
The winners of each semi will then meet at Porto’s Dragao stadium on Sunday, with the losing semi-finalists contesting a third-place play-off in Guimaraes earlier that day.
Qualifying for the final stage was via League A of the inaugural Nations League, in which the top 12 European countries according to Uefa's co-efficient seeding system were divided into four groups, the teams playing each other twice between September and November. Portugal, who finished above Italy and Poland, successfully bid to host the finals.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
More on Quran memorisation:
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
