An estimated two million Muslims descended from Mount Arafat on Monday, concluding the highlight of the Hajj and beginning their trip back to Mecca to finish the annual pilgrimage. White-robed pilgrims struggled after sunset to track back from Arafat, site of the Prophet Mohammed's last sermon, to their first stop in Muzdalifah, while buses bursting with pilgrims stood at a standstill amid huge crowds of people.
Pilgrims had converged on Mount Arafat and its surrounding plain from early on Monday morning.