Aug 19, 2018

Saudi Arabia to host more than 2 million Muslims for Hajj

Muslims walk around the Kaaba in Mecca, Saudi Arabia

Photo: Ahmad Al-Rubaye/AFP/Getty Images

More than 2 million Muslims have begun the annual Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca, Islam's holiest city, in Saudi Arabia, Al Jazeera reports.

Why it matters: Every able-bodied Muslim is required to take part in the five-day pilgrimage at least once in their life to visit the Kaaba, a cube-shaped building considered the holiest site in Islam, and perform a series of other holy rituals.

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