Through the Lens: Ramadan observed across Asia
A selection of striking photos from across Asia
February 27, 2026
Muslims around the world are observing Ramadan, the Islamic holy month of daily fasting from before sunrise until sunset.
In Muslim-majority nations like Indonesia and Malaysia, local religious authorities dispatched officers to observe the moon phase known as hilal to determine the start of the holy month and will do so again in a few weeks to determine the end of it, marked by the Eid al-Fitr holiday.
During Ramadan, Muslims are encouraged to perform more religious rituals, such as prayers in the evening and Quran recitation, and charity work. There are also periods of festivity, with families and friends often gathering to break their fast together and people crowding Ramadan bazaars to hunt for snacks and food, some of which only become popular during the holy month.
Indonesia
An official from the Ministry of Religious Affairs looks through a telescope to observe the position of the moon to determine the start of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan on the top of the Monument National in Jakarta on Feb. 17. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
An official from the Ministry of Religious Affairs looks through a telescope to observe the position of the moon to determine the start of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan on the top of the Monument National in Jakarta on Feb. 17. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
High-rise buildings during sunset in Jakarta on Feb. 17. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
High-rise buildings during sunset in Jakarta on Feb. 17. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
A woman uses binoculars to see the Jakarta cityscape on the top of the Monument National in Jakarta on Feb. 17. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
A woman uses binoculars to see the Jakarta cityscape on the top of the Monument National in Jakarta on Feb. 17. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
The Great Mosque of Istiqlal in Jakarta on Feb. 17. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
The Great Mosque of Istiqlal in Jakarta on Feb. 17. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
A child rests during prayers at the Great Mosque of Istiqlal in Jakarta on Feb. 18. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
A child rests during prayers at the Great Mosque of Istiqlal in Jakarta on Feb. 18. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
A girl learns how to pray at the Great Mosque of Istiqlal in Jakarta on Feb. 18. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
A girl learns how to pray at the Great Mosque of Istiqlal in Jakarta on Feb. 18. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
A woman charges her smartphone before praying at the Great Mosque of Istiqlal in Jakarta on Feb. 18. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
A woman charges her smartphone before praying at the Great Mosque of Istiqlal in Jakarta on Feb. 18. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
A woman reads the Quran at the Great Mosque of Istiqlal in Jakarta on Feb. 18. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
A woman reads the Quran at the Great Mosque of Istiqlal in Jakarta on Feb. 18. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
Women attend an evening mass prayer during the first night of Ramadan at the Great Mosque of Istiqlal in Jakarta on Feb. 18. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
Women attend an evening mass prayer during the first night of Ramadan at the Great Mosque of Istiqlal in Jakarta on Feb. 18. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
Women attend an evening mass prayer at the Great Mosque of Istiqlal in Jakarta on Feb. 18. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
Women attend an evening mass prayer at the Great Mosque of Istiqlal in Jakarta on Feb. 18. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
A woman performs an evening prayer at the Great Mosque of Istiqlal in Jakarta on Feb. 18. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
A woman performs an evening prayer at the Great Mosque of Istiqlal in Jakarta on Feb. 18. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
A man prays during an evening prayer at the Great Mosque of Istiqlal in Jakarta on Feb. 18. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
A man prays during an evening prayer at the Great Mosque of Istiqlal in Jakarta on Feb. 18. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
Men pray at the Great Mosque of Istiqlal in Jakarta on Feb. 18. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
Men pray at the Great Mosque of Istiqlal in Jakarta on Feb. 18. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
A man and his son sit in the corridor of the Great Mosque of Istiqlal in Jakarta on Feb. 18. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
A man and his son sit in the corridor of the Great Mosque of Istiqlal in Jakarta on Feb. 18. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
The Great Mosque of Istiqlal in Jakarta on Feb. 18. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
The Great Mosque of Istiqlal in Jakarta on Feb. 18. (Photo by Yuki Kohara)
Jammu and Kashmir
Women wearing veils listen attentively to a speaker during a Ramadan gathering inside a madrassa in Bagh Bela village near the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir on Feb. 24. (Photo by Nasir Kachroo/Getty Images)
Women wearing veils listen attentively to a speaker during a Ramadan gathering inside a madrassa in Bagh Bela village near the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir on Feb. 24. (Photo by Nasir Kachroo/Getty Images)
A Kashmiri woman touches a chain tied to the gate of the shrine of Sufi saint Sheikh Abdul Qadir Jeelani during the holy fasting month of Ramadan in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, on Feb. 23. (Photo by Sharafat Ali/Reuters)
A Kashmiri woman touches a chain tied to the gate of the shrine of Sufi saint Sheikh Abdul Qadir Jeelani during the holy fasting month of Ramadan in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, on Feb. 23. (Photo by Sharafat Ali/Reuters)
Kashmiri Muslims perform ablution at a pond before offering prayers inside the Grand Mosque on the first Friday of the holy Islamic month of Ramadan in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, on Feb. 20. (Photo by Yawar Nazir/Getty Images)
Kashmiri Muslims perform ablution at a pond before offering prayers inside the Grand Mosque on the first Friday of the holy Islamic month of Ramadan in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, on Feb. 20. (Photo by Yawar Nazir/Getty Images)
Shopkeepers sort dates as they wait for customers at a market ahead of the holy fasting month of Ramadan in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, on Feb. 17. (Photo by Sharafat Ali/Reuters)
Shopkeepers sort dates as they wait for customers at a market ahead of the holy fasting month of Ramadan in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, on Feb. 17. (Photo by Sharafat Ali/Reuters)
India
Muslims break their fast at iftar time during the month of Ramadan at a shop in Kolkata on Feb. 23. (Photo by Debarchan Chatterjee/Getty Images)
Muslims break their fast at iftar time during the month of Ramadan at a shop in Kolkata on Feb. 23. (Photo by Debarchan Chatterjee/Getty Images)
Pakistan
A neon decoration placed by local authorities in connection with the Muslim holy month of Ramadan in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, on Feb. 17. (Photo by Anjum Naveed/AP)
A neon decoration placed by local authorities in connection with the Muslim holy month of Ramadan in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, on Feb. 17. (Photo by Anjum Naveed/AP)
The New Memon Mosque is illuminated as Muslims attend an evening mass prayer session on the first night of Ramadan in Karachi on Feb. 18. (Photo by Akhtar Soomro/Reuters)
The New Memon Mosque is illuminated as Muslims attend an evening mass prayer session on the first night of Ramadan in Karachi on Feb. 18. (Photo by Akhtar Soomro/Reuters)
A vendor fills a bottle with oil perfume for a customer from his makeshift stall, as Muslims gather to attend an evening mass prayer session outside New Memon Mosque in Karachi on Feb. 18. (Photo by Akhtar Soomro/Reuters)
A vendor fills a bottle with oil perfume for a customer from his makeshift stall, as Muslims gather to attend an evening mass prayer session outside New Memon Mosque in Karachi on Feb. 18. (Photo by Akhtar Soomro/Reuters)
Muslims offer prayers on the first Friday of the holy fasting month of Ramadan in Karachi on Feb. 20. (Photo by Akhtar Soomro/Reuters)
Muslims offer prayers on the first Friday of the holy fasting month of Ramadan in Karachi on Feb. 20. (Photo by Akhtar Soomro/Reuters)
Malaysia
Malaysia's religious department members use a telescope to observe the moon that marks the start of Islam's holy month of Ramadan in Kuala Lumpur on Feb. 17. (Photo by Arif Kartono/AFP/Jiji)
Malaysia's religious department members use a telescope to observe the moon that marks the start of Islam's holy month of Ramadan in Kuala Lumpur on Feb. 17. (Photo by Arif Kartono/AFP/Jiji)
Muslim women join a mass prayer during the first evening of Ramadan at Putra Mosque in Putrajaya, Malaysia, on Feb. 18. (Photo by Hasnoor Hussain/Reuters)
Muslim women join a mass prayer during the first evening of Ramadan at Putra Mosque in Putrajaya, Malaysia, on Feb. 18. (Photo by Hasnoor Hussain/Reuters)
Bangladesh
Volunteers prepare iftar meals for Muslim devotees before they break their fast during the holy month of Ramadan at Baitul Mukarram National Mosque in Dhaka on Feb. 22. (Photo by Mamunur Rashid/Getty Images)
Volunteers prepare iftar meals for Muslim devotees before they break their fast during the holy month of Ramadan at Baitul Mukarram National Mosque in Dhaka on Feb. 22. (Photo by Mamunur Rashid/Getty Images)
Muslims eat iftar meals to break their fast on the first day of the holy fasting month of Ramadan at the Baitul Mukarram National Mosque in Dhaka on Feb. 19. (Photo by Mohammad Ponir Hossain/Reuters)
Muslims eat iftar meals to break their fast on the first day of the holy fasting month of Ramadan at the Baitul Mukarram National Mosque in Dhaka on Feb. 19. (Photo by Mohammad Ponir Hossain/Reuters)
Devotees pray at Baitul Mukarram National Mosque during the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan in Dhaka on Feb. 20. (Photo by Mahmud Hossain Opu/AP)
Devotees pray at Baitul Mukarram National Mosque during the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan in Dhaka on Feb. 20. (Photo by Mahmud Hossain Opu/AP)