In Photos: Russia's Muslims Mark Eid al-Adha
Muslim believers across Russia on Friday joined in celebrating Eid al-Adha, one of the two main festivals in Islam.
The holiday, most commonly known as Kurban Bayram in Russia, celebrates Prophet Ibrahim’s devotion to God and willingness to sacrifice his son when God ordered him to.
Members of Russia’s 20 million-strong Muslim community attended a festive prayer service and marked the celebration with a sacrifice of livestock animals — a symbolic ritual commemorating Prophet Ibrahim’s story.
Here is a closer look at the celebrations across Russia:
The holiday, most commonly known as Kurban Bayram in Russia, celebrates Prophet Ibrahim’s devotion to God and willingness to sacrifice his son when God ordered him to.
Members of Russia’s 20 million-strong Muslim community attended a festive prayer service and marked the celebration with a sacrifice of livestock animals — a symbolic ritual commemorating Prophet Ibrahim’s story.
Here is a closer look at the celebrations across Russia:
A man assembles his prayer mat before a morning prayer at the Moscow Cathedral Mosque.
Sergei Karpukhin / TASS
A prayer service at the Märcani Mosque in Kazan, the capital of Russia's republic of Tatarstan.
Yegor Aleyev / TASS
Men carry a sacrificial sheep near Kazan's Märcani Mosque.
Yegor Aleyev / TASS
Muslims pray near the St. Petersburg Mosque.
Valentin Yegorshin / TASS
Believers attend a prayer service at the Moscow Cathedral Mosque.
Vasily Kuzmichenok / Moskva News Agency
Moscow's Cathedral Mosque has a capacity of 10,000 people — not nearly enough to accommodate all worshipers.
Vasily Kuzmichenok / Moskva News Agency
At least 4 million residents of the Russian capital identify as Muslim.
Vasily Kuzmichenok / Moskva News Agency
Most Muslims living in Moscow hail from the Muslim-majority republics of Russia's North Caucasus and the Volga region, as well as the former Soviet states of Central Asia.
Sergei Kiselev / Moskva News Agency
Authorities in Moscow and St.Petersburg ordered road closures on Friday to accommodate thousands of people praying on the streets.
Moskva News Agency
Unlike areas of central Russia, Kurban Bayram is recognized as a state holiday in the country's Muslim-majority republics, including Bashkortostan, Chechnya, Dagestan and Tatarstan.
Vasily Kuzmichenok / Moskva News Agency
