JAKARTA, Indonesia – The government will conduct an isbat, or confirmation meeting, to decide the date of Idul Fitri late on Saturday, local media reported Tuesday (August 14th).

Saturday after sunset, the Religious Affairs Ministry will receive reports of observations of the hilal, the crescent moon marking the beginning of the month after Ramadan, from various parts of the country, Bahrul Hayat, the ministry's secretary general, told The Jakarta Post.

Muslim organisation Muhammadiyah has announced that Idul Fitri will fall on August 19th, using a calendar-based calculation rather than the observation-based method.

A senior astronomer with Indonesia's National Institute of Aeronautics and Space (Lapan) said there was likely to be agreement among Muslims regarding Idul Fitri this year.

"Insha Allah, they will uniformly decide that it will fall on August 19th, because on Saturday, Ramadan 29, 1432, or in the evening of August 18th, the altitude of the hilal will be seven degrees above the horizon," making it clearly visible, Thomas Djamaluddin told The Jakarta Globe.

Muhammadiyah often celebrates Idul Fitri earlier than most Indonesian Muslims. This year it set the start of Ramadan on July 20th, a day earlier than the government did.