Mecca - There are those who come from countries at war, others who saved their entire lives, and some making the pilgrimage for the umpteenth time.They are among more than 1.

Riyadh - Saudi Arabia, a key backer of Syria's rebels, has welcomed a ceasefire brokered by Moscow and Washington, but stressed President Bashar al-Assad's regime must abide by it.

Mecca - Saudi Arabia has launched Persian-language television broadcasts from this year's hajj, the information minister said on Sunday, following tensions with Iran over the annual pilgrimage.

Mena - Muslim pilgrims reached Mina on Monday for the ritual stoning of the devil, the last major rite of the annual hajj and the scene of a devastating stampede last year.

Mecca - For the first time in 35 years Saudi Arabia's top cleric will not give a traditional hajj sermon to pilgrims from around the world, a newspaper reported on Saturday.

Mecca - The hajj pilgrimage, which got under way in the Muslim holy places in Saudi Arabia on Saturday, is one of the world's largest annual gatherings.Here are some figures illustrating its scale, according to officials and local media:- More than 1.

Mena - Close to 1.5 million Muslims from around the world prepared on Saturday night for the climax of the annual hajj pilgrimage at a rocky hill known as Mount Arafat.

Mecca - Nearly 1.5 million pilgrims have converged on western Saudi Arabia for the annual hajj where new measures aim to prevent a recurrence of last year's stampede which killed around 2,300.

Mecca - Close to 1.5 million Muslims from around the world had descended Thursday on Saudi Arabia for the annual hajj pilgrimage, undeterred by last year's stampede disaster but with Iranians absent.

Mecca - After spending thousands of dollars to reach Mecca for the hajj, Muslim pilgrims face another unavoidable cost -– for the armfuls of gifts they are expected to take home.

Mecca - Muslims from across the world have gathered in Mecca in Saudi Arabia for the annual hajj pilgrimage, which is a pillar of Islam, to take part in the following rituals:- Ihram: Pilgrims wear special outfits, which for men is a two-piece white seamless g...

Mecca - Despite being emotionally scarred by the death of two childhood friends during last year's hajj stampede, Muhammad Sani has still returned to Saudi Arabia for another pilgrimage.

Growth in solar power technology continues and considerable research efforts are orientated towards making solar panels more efficient. A novel way of doing so involves the use of imploding bubbles.

Microsoft has been forced to apologise after its Bing search engine began automatically translating "Daesh" into "Saudi Arabia." The company blamed crowdsourced translations for the error and is investigating the issue. Saudi users called for a boycott.

Najran - It doesn't look like there is war in Najran.Not when you drive down King Abdul Aziz Road in the late afternoon sun, past the luxury hotel, the hypermarket and the sprawling gym in this southern Saudi city near the border with Yemen.

Jeddah - US Secretary of State John Kerry on Thursday announced a fresh international peace initiative for Yemen aimed at forming a unity government to resolve its 17-month-old conflict.

Jeddah - US Secretary of State John Kerry was holding talks with his Gulf counterparts and a British minister in Saudi Arabia on Thursday on the conflicts in Yemen, Syria and Libya.

Riyadh - The US military has slashed the number of intelligence advisers directly supporting the Saudi-led coalition's air war in Yemen, the US Navy said on Saturday, after concerns over civilian casualties.

Riyadh - Six months after Saudi Arabia said its war in Yemen was winding down, air strikes are again pounding rebels and rockets flying across the border, with no end to the conflict in sight.

Riyadh - Saudi Arabia suffered its worst civilian death toll Tuesday in cross-border shelling from Yemen as an anti-rebel coalition it leads launched an investigation into a deadly strike on a hospital.