The Grand Mosque in the holy city of Mecca will start hosting an international Quran competition on Saturday.

The 45th King Abdulaziz International Competition for the Memorization, Recitation, and Interpretation of the Quran will get underway in the holy city tomorrow. 

The competition is organized and supervised by the Saudi Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Call and Guidance.

Contestants from 128 countries around the world will participate, the largest number of participating countries since the competition was established more than 45 years ago.

The Minister of Islamic Affairs, Call and Guidance, Abdullatif bin Abdulaziz Al Al-Sheikh, said, “The Ministry is honored to organize this prestigious competition, which is considered one of the most prominent international Quran competitions.”