Two million pilgrims converge in Mecca for the hajj

Two million Muslims from across the globe are converging on Mecca in Saudi Arabia for the hajj pilgrimage, a religious duty and for some pilgrims the journey of a lifetime .
This year sees the return of pilgrims from Shiite Iran , regional rival to Sunni powerhouse Saudi Arabia, and comes with the Gulf mired in political crisis and Islamic State group jihadists squeezed in Iraq and Syria .
“I’ m so excited because many people dream of coming to this place, ” said 47 -year-old Eni from Indonesia , her face framed in a sand -coloured veil trimmed with lace .
“We feel more religious when we leave this place , ” she said.
Indonesia is the world ’ s most populous Muslim nation , and it also provides the largest number of pilgrims for the hajj.
Eni’ s compatriots throng Jeddah airport 80 kilometres (50 miles) west of Mecca , as tens of thousands of pilgrims pass through the gateway to the hajj every day .
But Eni is almost oblivious to the hubbub that surrounds her as she studies her Koran in the oppressive heat, pearls of sweat beading her face .
“After my first pilgrimage I felt I wanted to come back to feel myself close to him, ” she said of the Prophet Mohammed before returning her attention to Islam ’ s holy book.
The hajj is one of the five pillars of the Islamic faith , which every Muslim is required to complete at least once in a lifetime if he or she has the means to do so .
“This year we expect around two million pilgrims, ” Abdelmajeed Mohammad Al -Afghani, director of hajj and umra ( lesser pilgrimage) affairs, told AFP .