The announcement follows the positive reports of crescent moon sighting in various locations in Nigeria, the monarch said

The Nigeria Supreme Council of Islamic Affairs (NSCIA) has declared that the Ramadan fast has ended Thursday while the Eid-el-Fitr will be on Friday.

The NSCIA, headed by the Sultan of Sokoto, Saad Abubakar, said this in a broadcast Thursday evening.

The announcement follows the positive reports of crescent moon sighting in various locations in Nigeria, the monarch said.

He prayed to Almighty Allah to "accept our worship in the month of Ramadan."

The National moonsighting committee is expected to release a detailed statement shortly.

The Eid-ul-fitr festival marks the end of Muslim fasting month, Ramadan, the ninth month of the lunar calendar where Muslims abstain from food, drink and sexual pleasure from dawn to dusk.

In the lunar Muslim calendar, each month begins with the sighting of the new moon.

The Ramadan and other months are either twenty-nine or thirty days, depending on when the new crescent is sighted.

Saudi Arabia and some other Muslim countries are also observing Eid-el-fitr Friday.