Large numbers of Muslims converge once a year on Saudi Arabia to unite in a series of religious rituals and acts of worship as they perform the Hajj, the pilgrimage that is one of the pillars of Islam.

Pilgrims were set to perform the last major ritual of the hajj -- the "stoning of the devil" -- on Friday, as Muslims around the globe celebrated the beginning of the Eid al-Adha holiday. The end of the hajj coincides with the beginning of Eid al-Adha -- an annual feasting holiday marked by the slaughter of an animal -- typically a goat,

Millions of Muslims from all over the world have converged on Mecca in Saudi Arabia to partake in Islam's annual Hajj pilgrimage.