Muslims around the world celebrate Eidul Azha

MAKKAH (Reuters) – Muslims around the world marked the Eidul Azha holiday on Tuesday, gathering at mosques or in vast open sites to celebrate one of the two most important festivals of the Islamic calendar. Commemorating the willingness of Ibrahim, or Abraham, to sacrifice his son on God’s command, Muslims mark the holiday by slaughtering animals such as sheep and goats. The meat is shared among family and friends and also donated to the poor. Palestinians visited the compound known to Muslims as al-Haram al-Sharif following morning prayers marking the first day of the Eidul Azha celebration. In Syria, President Bashar Al-Assad attended prayers at a mosque in Damascus. The festival was also celebrated across Africa and Asia. In the Kenyan capital Nairobi thousands gathered in a field for mass prayers, the faithful also met in the Somali capital Mogadishu, and prayed at Almaty’s Central Mosque in Kazakhstan. The festival comes as the annual Haj pilgrimage to Makkah in Saudi Arabia draws to a close.