Unfortunately, the calculation method of the Fajr prayer has become the subject of fierce debate recently, and some people – lacking the necessary knowledge and expertise – have made baseless declarations and with these they raised doubts in others.
Therefore the Organization of Muslims in Hungary, after making a long and thorough research and consultations with the Ulemah of the Ummah on the methodology of specifying the time of Fajr, have decided to follow the Resolution number 6 of the Islamic Fiqh Council of the Muslim World League.
Between 12th and 19th of Rajab in 1406 (between 22nd and 29th of March in 1986) the Islamic Fiqh Council had a session in Makkah in the building of the Muslim World League. The Council - that was chaired by Sheikh Ibn Baz at that time -, after listening to the research results and findings of Islamic scholars and astronomers, made a resolution that was signed by 20 leading scholars of the Ummah. According to the resolution the time (start) of Fajr is when the Sun reaches 18° below the Eastern horizon.
Explanation: The start of the astronomical dawn (the morning astronomical twilight) is the moment when the geometric center of the Sun is 18 degrees below the horizon in the morning. The duration of the twilight is the function of the angle of the sun's apparent motion with respect to crossing the horizon at dawn and sunset. The bigger this this angle is the faster the sun passes through the 18° zone of the twilight, and the shorter is the duration of the twilight. … The earth cannot simply be divided into a full lit and a completely dark night side. The twilight zone decreases by 18° the range of the full lit dawn and a completely dark night hemisphere.” (In: Nagyváradi-Gyenizse [2010]: Globe Practices, Chapter 22, PTE – University of Pécs, Hungary)
The European Council for Fatwa And Research during its regular meeting at its headquarter in Dublin, Ireland between 6th and 10th of Dhul Qidah in 1424 (between 31st of December 2003 and 4th of January 2004) accepted the same resolution. According to that the time (start) of Fajr is when the Sun reaches 18° below the Eastern horizon.
The Association of Italian Imams and Religious Leaders (Associazione Islamica Italiana degli Imam e delle Guide Religiose) in its session between 12th and 13th of Shaban in 1434 (between 30th and 31st of May in 2015) also accepted the above mentioned resolution, that the time (start) of Fajr is when the Sun reaches 18° below the Eastern horizon.
This is the standpoint of Sharia (Islamic jurisprudence) and in the Muslim world all of the Muslim countries use twilight angles ranging between 18° and 19.5° and there is not a single county that would calculate the time of the Fajr prayer with a twilight angle less than 18°. (Because with the use of a twilight angle less than 18° in a specific location, would mean that place on the earth is already in the twilight zone at the time of the calculated dawn. Therefore, as a result, the real time of Fajr would be earlier that the one calculated with a twilight angle less than 18° in the calendar.)
After many layman had criticized the calculations with the use of 18° twilight angle, the International Astronomical Center made a long statement on 5th July in 2015 signed by 17 well known experts of astronomy. (The title of the statement was: “The Consensus of Experts: It is Not Correct to Say that the Time of the Fajr Prayer in the Calendars Are Much Earlier than the Real Time of the Prayer”.)
Therefore we ask every Muslim to follow the calculation method based on evidences and refrain from deeds based on desires and baseless opinions, as Allah, the Most High, said in the Qur'an: „And do not pursue that of which you have no knowledge. Indeed, the hearing, the sight and the heart - about all those [one] will be questioned.” (Qur'an, 17:36)
Organization of Muslims in Hungary