Photo Gallery: Hajj 2000

A stream of hujjaj (pilgrims) arrive in Arafat by foot. Over 2 million Muslims attended Hajj this year. Others arrive packed in - and on - buses. A woman prays for forgiveness. In temperatures reaching 37 degrees Celsius (99 F), many pilgrims shelter below umbrellas. The midday prayer at Arafat - a child sleeps bound to her praying mother's back. A hajji reads from the Qur'an. In the background others clamber onto Mount Arafat. Hujjaj brings stones from Mount Arafat to cast at the Shaytaan (this is called Jamarat).

These fireproof tents were set up after the fire in 1997.

Camels are brought to a new $125 million slaughterhouse built this year by the Saudis.

This morning's fajr prayer at Masjid Al-Haram. Shaving the head to mark the end of Ihram.

Reprinted from the BBC Online