Religion

Muslims worldwide celebrate Eid al-Adha, the Festival of Sacrifice

Muslim worshippers gather for Eid al-Adha prayers next to the Dome of the Rock at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem’s Old City [Mahmoud Illean/AP Photo]

Muslim pilgrims leave after casting pebbles at pillars in the symbolic stoning of the devil, the last rite of the annual Hajj, in Mina, near the holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia. [Altaf Qadri/AP Photo]

Muslim worshippers pray during Eid al-Adha at the war-damaged Al-Sayyid Abdul Rahman al-Mahdi mosque in Khartoum, Sudan. [Marwan Ali/AP Photo]

Muslims offer Eid al-Adha prayers outside the Moscow Cathedral Mosque in Moscow, Russia. [Pavel Bednyakov/AP Photo]

Muslims attend Eid al-Adha prayers in an open field in Minna, Nigeria. [Sunday Alamba/AP Photo]

Palestinians offer Eid al-Adha prayers beside the ruins of a mosque destroyed by Israeli bombardment in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip. [Abdel Kareem Hana/AP Photo]

A woman has her hands painted with traditional henna as she attends Eid al-Adha prayers at the historic Badshahi Mosque in Lahore, Pakistan. [KM Chaudary/AP Photo]

Muslim women perform morning prayers marking the Eid al-Adha holiday on a street in Jakarta, Indonesia. [Dita Alangkara/AP Photo]

A girl holds a balloon as she celebrates Eid al-Adha with her family after prayers outside the Mohammad Al-Amin Mosque in Beirut, Lebanon. [Hassan Ammar/AP Photo]

A boy watches over goats at Kiamaiko Market before Eid al-Adha in Nairobi, Kenya. [Patrick Ngugi/AP Photo]

Iraqi Shia Muslims gather for Eid al-Adha prayers at the Imam Ali shrine in Najaf, Iraq. [Anmar Khalil/AP Photo]

A Yemeni boy dressed in traditional clothes stands near a crowd of women waiting to perform Eid al-Adha prayers at Freedom Square in Taiz, Yemen. [Abdulnasser Alseddik/AP Photo]

00:37

From: NewsFeed

Muslim pilgrims participate in stone-throwing ritual on third day of Hajj

More than a million Muslim pilgrims are participating in the stone-throwing ritual on the third day of Hajj.

01:48

From: NewsFeed

Video: Muslims around the world attend Eid prayers

Millions of Muslims all around the world have united in prayers on the first day of Eid al-Adha.

‘Naturally scared’: India’s Muslims denied public spaces for Eid prayers

Mosques are asking worshippers to pray in shifts, as authorities issue threats against congregations.

01:26

From: NewsFeed

Children perform ‘mini Hajj’ in Gaza as Israel blocks pilgrims

A Gaza City school taught children how to perform the entire Hajj, as Palestinians miss the pilgrimage for a third year.

EXPLAINER

What has Pope Leo warned about AI – and why that’s significant

The pontiff presented his encyclical at the Vatican alongside AI experts.

Hajj pilgrims gather at Mount Arafat under scorching desert sun

Muslim pilgrims pray on Saudi Arabia's Mount Arafat, also known as Jabal al-Rahma or Mount of Mercy, during the pinnacle of the Hajj pilgrimage [Zain Jaafar/AFP]

Nearly two million Muslims gather on the vast plain of Arafat, standing in prayer under the blazing sun during the high point of the Hajj. [Zain Jaafar/AFP]

Shoulder to shoulder, worshippers from more than 150 countries raise their hands in supplication, seeking God’s mercy on the most important day of Hajj. [Zain Jaafar/AFP]

A Muslim pilgrim reads a copy of Islam's holy book Quran atop of the rocky hill known as the Mountain of Mercy, on the Plain of Arafat. [Altaf Qadri/AP Photo]

Pilgrims in simple white garments pack the slopes of the 70-metre (230-foot) hill at Arafat, retracing the steps of the Prophet Muhammad more than 1,400 years on. [Zain Jaafar/AFP]

A Muslim pilgrim sits while covering the head with a book and praying on Saudi Arabia's Mount Arafat. [Zain Jaafar/AFP]

Men wrapped in two unstitched pieces of cloth and women in loose-fitting dresses stand in silence at Arafat, symbolising unity beyond race, wealth or nationality. [Zain Jaafar/AFP]

Arafat, often described as a preview of the Day of Judgment, becomes a sea of white as pilgrims chant, weep and repent beneath the desert sky. [Zain Jaafar/AFP]

After a night of reflection in the tent city of Mina, pilgrims arrive early at Arafat to spend the afternoon in wuquf — standing in prayer from midday until sunset. [Zain Jaafar/AFP]

At sunset, the vast congregation begins its slow departure from Arafat, heading back towards Mina to continue the Hajj with the stoning of the devil ritual. [Zain Jaafar/AFP]