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The Latest Breaking News from Mecca

Million-plus Begin Hajj Pilgrimage Under Shadow Of Gaza War

More than a million Muslim pilgrims were in Mecca Friday for the start of a hajj pilgrimage held against the grim backdrop of the Gaza war and in exhausting summer heat.

International Business Times

Masses of pilgrims in Saudi Arabia circle the Kaaba ahead of the official beginning of the Hajj

Muslim pilgrims in Mecca in Saudi Arabia are circling the Kaaba, Islam’s holiest site, as they prepare for the official start of the Hajj

The Independent UK

Muslim Pilgrims Flock To Mecca For Annual Hajj

Over 1.5 million foreign pilgrims gather in Mecca for the annual Hajj pilgrimage, expressing hopes for peace and freedom for Palestine. Pilgrims perform ri...

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Hajj On The Cheap: Off-the-books Pilgrims Hide Out In Mecca

Living on canned beans and meat, the 70-year-old Egyptian has been hiding out in a Mecca apartment for weeks, hoping to evade a Saudi dragnet and perform the hajj pilgrimage illegally.

International Business Times

Big Zuu Goes to Mecca review – a quietly revolutionary portrait of Islam

This thoroughly sweet look at the grime artist and TV chef making a pilgrimage is that rarest of things – an intimate profile of being male and Muslim

The Guardian - UK

Beehives and Biba: 60s fashion comes out swinging in 2024

From the revival of a London style mecca to TV’s Palm Royale, the decade’s trends are making a comeback

The Guardian - UK

Air travel plans, summer tourism take a hit as temperatures soar, elections due in April

There has been a shift in travel plans thanks to the unusual temperatures and the upcoming General elections. Bitten by the poll bug, a good number of expatriates have chosen to fly home rather than bring their families abroad for the summer vacation; while many pilgrims set to visit Mecca…

The Hindu

Somber, joyful, magical: Some of the most compelling AP religion photos of 2023

In the searing heat of Mecca, throngs of Muslims from around the world converged for the annual Hajj pilgrimage.

The Independent UK

Why Al-Aqsa remains a sensitive site in Palestine-Israel conflict

As a scholar of global Islam, I teach an introduction to Islam course and include a discussion about Al-Aqsa as part of the syllabus. That’s because Al-Aqsa has deep religious significance for Muslims around the world.

The Conversation

The untold story of how Howard University came to be known as 'The Mecca'

If you ask just about anyone at Howard University what’s the other name for their school, they will readily tell you: “The Mecca.”

The Conversation

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Al Jazeera

Extreme weather brings winds, fierce rains to Saudi Arabia’s Mecca

Pilgrims doing the tawaf on Tuesday were caught in storms as lightning hit an iconic tower in Mecca.

WEKU

China makes it harder for its Muslim citizens to go to Mecca, or anywhere else

Chinese Muslims take roundabout trips for their Hajj pilgrimage, trying to circumvent China's tightened surveillance at every turn — and possible arrest on their return, pilgrims and tour leaders say.

The Conversation

Paris Olympics: with 365 days to go, will this mega-event clinch a sustainability gold medal?

Mega-events such as the Coachella Music Festival, the pilgrimages to Mecca and the World Cup have become increasingly prominent in contemporary times, yet we often neglect to consider the environmental impact of bringing tens of thousands and sometimes millions of people together.

The Conversation

Women can now undertake Islamic pilgrimages without a male guardian in Saudi Arabia, but that doesn't mean they're traveling alone -- communities are an important part of the religious experience

Saudi Arabia has changed its decadeslong rule that mandated single women be accompanied by a male relative when performing an Islamic pilgrimage, facilitating the participation of thousands of single Muslim women in the Hajj in 2023.

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The Independent UK

AP Month in Pictures: Middle East

Violence continued in the occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip between Israeli security forces and Palestinian militants. The gallery also shows how people coped with the heat wave around the region and during the annual Hajj pilgrimage in Mecca, Saudi Arabia; poverty in Pakistan; and the Pride party in…

The Independent UK

How Mecca is the lynchpin for Saudi Arabia's hospitality and tourism drive

Saudi Arabia is pumping billions of dollars into the holy city of Mecca to meet its ambitious economic targets, with high-end hotels, apartment blocks, retailers and restaurants planned for areas around the Grand Mosque

France 24

Millions of pilgrims converge on Saudi Arabia for Hajj

It's one of the largest religious gatherings in the world: the Hajj pilgrimage is underway this week in Saudi Arabia, with some 2 million Muslims converging in Mecca and at Mount Arafat. This year's Hajj could be the largest on record, according to officials, after several quieter years during the…

The Conversation

An unbroken covenant with God: what the Hajj means for Muslims

Millions of men, women and children have converged on Mecca this week for the Hajj pilgrimage. The Saudi government says it will be the largest crowd ever for the pilgrimage.

Space

UAE astronaut spies Mecca from space station during Hajj (photo)

UAE astronaut Sultan Al Neyadi photographed Mecca, one of Islam's holiest cities, from the International Space Station during the annual pilgrimage, or Hajj.

WEKU

Standing where Prophet Muhammad gave his final sermon, 2 million Muslims perform Hajj

This is the largest pilgrimage since 2019, after which the Hajj was dramatically curbed due to coronavirus restrictions that limited the pilgrimage to just a few thousand people.

The Independent UK

'Hajj is not Mecca': Why prayers at Mount Arafat are the spiritual peak of Islamic pilgrimage

Muslim pilgrims gather on the rocky hill Mount Arafat outside Mecca for a day of prayer on the second day of the annual Hajj pilgrimage

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