Shafaq News/ The office od Iraq's top Shiite cleric, Ali al-Sistani, has declared Saturday as the first day of the Eid al-Fitr celebration, marking a divergence from other Iraqi and regional institutions.

The Sunni Endowment Diwan, the Iraqi Islamic Jurisprudence Assembly, Dar al-Ifta, as well as the Kurdistan Region's Endowment, had previously announced that Friday would be the first day of Eid al-Fitr holidays.

Similarly, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and Turkey have affirmed that Friday marks the beginning of the much-anticipated Eid al-Fitr celebrations.