Thousands of Muslims circled the Kaaba on July 6 during the Hajj pilgrimage in Mecca, Saudi Arabia.

The largest annual pilgrimage in the world is a religious duty that must be carried out at least once in the lifetime of every able-bodied Muslim who can afford to do so.

RESTRICTION SUMMARY: Mecca - 06 July 2022. Muslim worshippers are seen pray around the Kaaba at the Grand Mosque from the Abraj Al-Bait Towers also known as the Mecca Royal Hotel Clock Tower, in Saudi Arabia's holy city of Mecca.

STORYLINE:

The biggest hajj pilgrimage since the Covid pandemic began kicked off today, with hundreds of thousands of mostly maskless worshippers circling Islam's holiest site in Saudi Arabia's Mecca.

One million people, including 850,000 from abroad, are allowed to participate in this year's hajj -- a key pillar of Islam that all able-bodied Muslims with the means are required to perform at least once -- after two years of drastically curtailed numbers due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Footage /APAwire