Haj pilgrims arrive at Mount Arafat

Haj pilgrims arrive by the hundreds of thousands at Mount Arafat in Saudi Arabia on Thursday for the Day of Arafat.

This is the climax of the Haj, where pilgrims spend the day in prayer.

The hilltop and the surrounding plain is where the Prophet Mohammad is believed to have delivered his final Haj sermon before his death.

One Syrian pilgrim told Reuters the he is praying for an end to unrest in his homeland.

The Haj is an annual pilgrimage mandatory once in a lifetime for every able-bodied Muslim who can afford it.

Many Muslims spend years looking forward to the journey.

(SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) EGYPTIAN PILGRIM, SAHAR HANAFI, SAYING:

"For five years I have been hoping to come. I used to cry each time I saw the pilgrims on TV until finally God brought me here and I witnessed it."

The annual Haj begins in the 12th month of the Islamic year, which is lunar, not solar.