ISLAM Muslim Pilgrims Converge on Mecca

HASSAN AMMAR / AP

Muslim pilgrims pray on a rocky hill called the Mountain of Mercy on the Plain of Arafat near the holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia, Thursday, Oct. 25, 2012.

MUHAMMED MUHEISEN / AP

A Pakistani man pulls a goat after buying it from a livestock market. The animal is intended for slaughter during the upcoming Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, or "Feast of Sacrifice", during the sunset on the outskirts of Islamabad, Pakistan, Wednesday, Oct. 24, 2012.

MOHAMMAD ISMAIL / REUTERS

Vendors wait for customers at a livestock market in Kabul October 23, 2012. Muslims around the world are preparing to celebrate Eid al-Adha, marking the end of the hajj, by slaughtering sheep, goats, cows and camels to commemorate Prophet Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son Ismail on God's command.

MUHAMMED MUHEISEN / AP

Pakistanis are silhouetted against the incoming traffic light while gathering in a street next to a livestock market for the upcoming Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, or "Feast of Sacrifice", on the outskirts of Islamabad, Pakistan, Thursday, Oct. 25, 2012.

HASSAN AMMAR / AP

Muslim pilgrims pray on Mountain of Mercy, on the Plain of Arafat near the holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia, in the early hours of Thursday, Oct. 25, 2012.

AMR ABDALLAH DALSH / REUTERS

Muslim pilgrims circle the Kaaba and pray at the Grand mosque during the annual hajj pilgrimage in the holy city of Mecca October 22, 2012, ahead of Eid al-Adha which marks the end of haj. On October 25, the day of Arafat, millions of Muslim pilgrims will stand in prayer on Mount Arafat near Mecca at the peak of the annual pilgrimage.

FAYEZ NURELDINE / AFP / GETTY IMAGES

Muslim pilgrims wait for the start of prayers at the Grand Mosque in the Saudi holy city of Mecca on October 22, 2012. Muslim pilgrims are descending in droves on Mecca for the hajj pilgrimage, the world's largest annual gathering which Saudi Arabia insists will not be affected by instability rocking the region.

FAYEZ NURELDINE / AFP / GETTY IMAGES

Muslim pilgrims pray on Mount Arafat, near the holy city of Mecca, Oct. 25, 2012. Vast crowds of Muslim pilgrims, all dressed in white, flocked from early in the morning to Mount Arafat in Saudi Arabia to take part in the main rituals of the annual hajj.

HASSAN AMMAR / AP

Muslim pilgrims circle the Kaaba inside and outside the Grand mosque in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, Monday, Oct. 22, 2012. The annual Islamic pilgrimage draws three million visitors each year, making it the largest yearly gathering of people in the world.

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