MAKKAH ON 22 OCTOBER 2012   Extraordinary photos show millions of  Muslims descending on Mecca's Grand Mosque for start of Islam's annual haj pilgrimage ‘I feel proud to be here because it's a visual message that Muslims are united. People speaking in all kind of languages pray to the one God,’ said Fahmi Mohammed al-Nemr, 52, from Egypt. Big event: Muslim pilgrims circle the Kaaba as they pray inside and outside the Grand Mosque in Mecca. The annual pilgrimage draws three million visitors each year Huge gathering: Muslim pilgrims perform their evening prayers in the Grand Mosque on Monday. The annual haj pilgrimage is one of the five pillars of Islam Policing: Saudi authorities warned they will stop any disruptive protests over the conflict in Syria Pigrimage: The Grand Mosque, the focal point of the Islamic faith, was already teeming with joyful pilgrims at dawn on Monday, wearing the simple white folds of cloth prescribed for haj Haj must be performed at least once in their lifetime by all Muslims capable of making the expensive, difficult journey, a duty that applies equally to Sunni and Shi'ite Muslims at a time of tension between Islam's main sects. Saudi leaders have emphasised it is a strictly religious occasion and they are prepared to deal with any troublemaking.                                             Extraordinary scenes: Muslim pilgrims leave the Grand Mosque (left) after performing the evening prayers (right), in the holy city of Mecca on Monday Observance: Muslim pilgrims circle the Kaaba and pray at the Grand Mosque during the annual haj pilgrimage in the holy city of Mecca on Monday Father and daughter: A Muslim pilgrim leaves the Grand Mosque with his child after performing the evening prayers, in the holy city of Mecca on Monday All ages: Muslim pilgrims attend to perform their evening prayers in the Grand Mosque in the holy city of Mecca on Monday ‘I                                 Afterwards: Muslim pilgrims leave the Grand Mosque after performing their evening prayers in the holy city of Mecca on Monday All together: Haj must be performed at least once in their lifetime by all Muslims capable of making the expensive, difficult journey Maintaining safety: Saudi leaders have emphasised it is a strictly religious occasion and they are prepared to deal with any troublemaking Beginning: Wednesday is the first official day of the pilgrimage, with Muslims following a set form of rites laid out by the Prophet, and it culminates on Friday Mecca's merchants, famed across the Arab world, are already doing a thriving trade as pilgrims stock up on souvenirs such as prayer beads and mats, Korans, dates, gold and zamzam water, pumped from a holy well. Amazing numbers: The Saudi authorities said there have so far been 1.7 million arrivals from abroad and about 200,000 from inside Saudi Arabia   Participant: Muslim pilgrims leave the Grand Mosque after the noon prayer in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, on Monday Avoidance of trouble: Authorities are keenly aware of past episodes of violence at haj, such as in 1979, when attackers seized the Grand Mosque Together as one: The extraordinary gathering was said by some of the faith to be a visual message that Muslims are united ‘The first time I saw the Kaaba I cried with joy. I prayed for myself and all Muslims,’ said Nafisa Rangrez, 36, from Gujarat in India, who had waited five years for a haj visa. All Muslims must face towards the Kaaba, the huge black cube at the centre of the Grand Mosque, five times a day for prayer, making a visit to the sanctuary a powerful experience. Pilgrims must circle it seven times when they arrive in Mecca. Tomorrow is the first official day of the pilgrimage, with Muslims following a set form of rites laid out by the Prophet and culminating on Friday with the Feast of the Sacrifice, Eid al-Adha, a holiday across the Islamic world. ‘I would love to live here for the rest of my life. There's no such place in the entire world. This is a blessed country,’ said Ziad Adam, 23, a theology student from Kenya. Saudi Arabia's king is formally titled Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and the ruling family has long based its claims to reign on its guardianship of Islam's birthplace. Over the past decade it has spent billions of dollars expanding the Grand Mosque and building new infrastructure to avert the stampedes