Turkey declares nine-day public holiday for Eid al-Fitr week

The holiday will officially start on July 5 and end on July 7. However, the eve of the holiday, July 4 this year, is usually a half-day workday in the country.

Yıldırım signed a circular on June 9 declaring that July 8 would also be a holiday, the statement said, thereby officially declaring a nine-day public holiday including the preceding and following weekends. 

Ramadan began on June 6 this year, with Muslims in Turkey set to practice fasting, one of the Five Pillars of Islam, until July 4. 

Ramadan, the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, is a time when Muslims abstain from food, drink, smoking and sex from sunrise to sunset.

Following the month’s end, thousands of Turks traditionally travel to their hometowns to spend time with their families, which has in recent years seen increased traffic accidents across the country due to the number of people on the roads.