Saudi declares Eid Al Adha holiday for certain sectors

Saudi officials have declared nine days of holiday for Eid Al Adha in certain sectors.

The Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority (SAMA) announced that banks, finance and insurance companies will be off from Friday, August 17, until Sunday, August 26.

The Saudi Stock Exchange had previously announced that the bourse would suspend trading activities during the Eid holiday, from Sunday August 19 to Sunday, August 26.

On Tuesday, the Kuwaiti Cabinet announced that public sector employees in the country will remain on leave for a week to celebrate the Eid Al Adha holiday.

The Eid holiday will begin on Sunday, August 19, and end on Thursday, August 23, and work in ministries and government institutes will be halted during the entire week.

Eid Al Adha is likely begin on Wednesday, August 22, a UAE astronomer predicted last month.

Sharjah Planetarium deputy director Ebrahim Al Jarwan said based on astronomical calculations Arafat Day would fall on Tuesday, August 21, according to Gulf News.

That would mean Eid Al Adha begins the next day.

Eid Al Adha, known as the ‘feast of the sacrifice’, honours the willingness of Ibrahim to sacrifice his son to God. Before he could commit the act, God sent an angel to replace the sacrifice with a sheep.

During Eid, Muslims sacrifice an animal in commemoration of this act and divide it into three parts.

One third is for family, one third is for relatives, friends and neighbours and one third is given to the poor and needy.

Last year, Eid fell on Friday, September 1, with UAE private sector workers receiving one extra day off to mark the occasion and public sector workers two extra days.

Read: UAE confirms private sector holiday dates for Eid Al Adha