A mountain in front is an obstacle to sighting the new moon

Question

With regard to sighting the new moon (ru'yat al-hilal), does the screening of the horizon by mountains (haylulat al-jibal) take the ruling of an obstruction in the sky ('illa fi al-sama') or not?

Answer

The rulings concerning the sighting of the new moon vary; with respect to Sha'ban, Ramadan and the two Eids there is much disagreement. The screening by mountains and the like has been mentioned in some rulings under the heading of the difference of lunar horizons (ikhtilaf al-matali')

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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