From the early hours of the morning worshippers crowded into the Grand Mosque's Haram and blocked nearby roads. Traffic police were busy diverting vehicular traffic away from the area.

In his sermon, Grand Mosque Imam Sheikh Abdul Rahman Al-Sudais urged Muslims to fear God and have piety, especially in the last 10 days of Ramadan. "Our Prophet (peace be upon him) dedicated himself to worship and was generous particularly to the poor during the last 10 days of the fasting month," he said.

Muslims spend the last 10 days of Ramadan in Etikaf, which involves intense voluntary worship in mosques. Sermons can often be heard from mosques across the Kingdom well into the night in the last third of Ramadan.

Al-Sudais said the Night of Power should be marked with prayers, supplications and repentance. The imam asked Muslims to close ranks and regain their historic glory and said Muslims must unite in the defense of Al-Quds (Jerusalem), where Al-Aqsa Mosque is located. He also asked them to assist Pakistan in the wake of the recent floods.

The Presidency of the Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques put up lights above the doors of the Haram, indicating the availability of space inside for worshippers. The lights were red for most of the prayer sermon.

More than 2,500 men and women kept Islam's holiest site clean while 10 health centers tended to pilgrims inside and outside of the Haram. Ambulances were on site to take emergency cases to local hospitals.

The Civil Defense also deployed its units around the Haram to deal with any general emergency situation, such as fires.

In Madinah, more than 500,000 worshippers prayed at the Prophet's Mosque in an atmosphere of peace, serenity and tranquility.

In his Friday sermon, Imam Sheikh Hussain Al-Sheikh asked worshippers to invest the remaining days of the fasting month in prayer, supplication and the recitation of the Qur'an.

Al-Sheikh implored Muslims to pay the compulsory Zakat Al-Fitr in kind rather than cash, saying that paying it in cash runs contrary to the spirit of the occasion. Al-Sheikh said Muslims should pay Zakat Al-Fitr not just on their individual behalves but also for their wives, parents, children even the unborn.