The Muslim holy month of Ramadan, featuring celebrations, prayers, pre-dawn breakfasts and post-sundown meals, began at sunrise in the Middle East and a day later in much of Asia. In the Muslim lunar calendar, months begin only when the new moon is sighted, which can lead to variations of a day or two.
A worker cleans the Sunehri Masjid ahead of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan in Peshawar, Pakistan.Photograph: Bilawal Arbab/EPA
A person in traditional attire offers a drink to someone inside a car in a decorated market street as Muslims prepare for Ramadan in Damascus, Syria.Photograph: Yamam Al Shaar/Reuters
A worker, centre, paints decorations in preparation for Ramadan in downtown Beirut, Lebanon.Photograph: Hussein Malla/AP
Palestinians keep the spirit of Ramadan alive for their children and families despite widespread destruction and harsh living conditions.Photograph: Anadolu/Getty Images
Indonesian Muslims hold a Rukyatul Hilal using rubu to observe the new crescent moon, which determines the start of Ramadan at Al-Mabrur mosque in Surabaya, Indonesia.Photograph: Robertus Pudyanto/Getty Images
A crescent moon shines in the sky on the first day of Ramadan in Sana’a, Yemen.Photograph: Yahya Arhab/EPA
Muslims in Malaysia performing tarawih, or evening prayers, to mark the first night of Ramadan at the National Mosque in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.Photograph: Anadolu/Getty Images
Muslim devotees wait to receive iftar meals to break their fast on the first day of Ramadan at the Wazir Khan mosque in Kabul.Photograph: Wakil Kohsar/AFP/Getty Images
Shiites observe the crescent moon to determine the start of Ramadan in Najaf, Iraq.Photograph: Anmar Khalil/AP
Muslims offering tarawih on the first night of Ramadan at the Grand mosque of Istiqlal in Jakarta. Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim nation, is set to begin observing Ramadan on Thursday, coinciding with millions of Muslims worldwide beginning their month-long fast from dawn to dusk.Photograph: Willy Kurniawan/Reuters
A drone light show takes place at Al-Azhar mosque, celebrating the upcoming holy month of Ramadan, in the old Islamic area of Cairo, Egypt.Photograph: Mohamed Abd El Ghany/Reuters
A man performs the evening tarawih prayers on the first night of Ramadan at the Umayyad mosque in Damascus, Syria.Photograph: Ghaith Alsayed/AP
A Palestinian family living in the Tel al-Hawa neighbourhood breaks their first Ramadan fast near the rubble of their home destroyed after the Israeli attacks on Gaza.Photograph: Anadolu/Getty Images
A boy looks through a window as worshippers offer prayers inside the mosque at the shrine of Hazrat Ali Hajveri, popularly known as Data Darbar, in Lahore, Pakistan.Photograph: Murtaza Ali/NurPhoto/Shutterstock
Turkish Muslims start Ramadan with prayers in Utrecht, the Netherlands.Photograph: ANP/Shutterstock
Historic Baščaršija, a bazaar, is decorated with moon and star-shaped illuminations to celebrate Ramadan in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina.Photograph: Anadolu/Getty Images
