Muslims around the world mark Prophet Muhammad's birthday

In Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, tens of thousands gathered Thursday for celebrations marking the birth of Islam’s Prophet Muhammad.

The event, organized by the Houthi movement, filled the streets with green banners, chants, and religious devotion. Rebel leader Abdul-Malik al-Houthi addressed the crowd during the mass gathering.

Meanwhile, in northern Iraq, thousands of Kurds came together in Irbil to mark the occasion. The city center echoed with traditional chants and drums as worshippers celebrated at the foot of the historic citadel, where a towering sign bore the Prophet’s name in Arabic.

Mawlid al-Nabi, or the Prophet’s birthday, is a public holiday in many Muslim-majority nations. Observed on the 12th of Rabi’ al-Awwal, its date varies with the lunar calendar. The Prophet is believed to have both been born and died on this same date, at the age of 63.