Editing Mecca (section)

=== Modern history ===
[[File:Makkah-1910.jpg|thumb|Mecca in 1910]]
====Hashemite revolt and subsequent control by the Sharifate of Mecca====

In [[World War I]], the Ottoman Empire was at war with the [[Allies of World War I|Allies]]. It had successfully repulsed an attack on [[Istanbul]] in the [[Gallipoli campaign]] and on Baghdad in the [[Siege of Kut]]. The British intelligence officer [[T. E. Lawrence]] conspired with the Ottoman governor, [[Hussein bin Ali, Sharif of Mecca|Hussain bin Ali]], the Sharif of Mecca to revolt against the Ottoman Empire and it was the first city captured by his forces in the [[Battle of Mecca (1916)|1916 Battle of Mecca]]. Sharif's revolt proved a turning point of the war on the eastern front. Hussein declared a new state, the [[Kingdom of Hejaz]], declaring himself the Sharif of the state and Mecca his capital. News reports in November 1916 via contact in [[Cairo]] with returning [[Hajj]] pilgrims, stated that with the Ottoman Turkish authorities gone, the Hajj of 1916 was free of the previous massive extortion and monetary demands made by the Turks who were agents of the Ottoman government.<ref>''[[Daily Telegraph]]'' Saturday 25 November 1916, reprinted in ''[[Daily Telegraph]]'' Friday 25 November 2016 issue (p. 36)</ref>

====Saudi conquest====

Following the [[Battle of Mecca (1924)|1924 Battle of Mecca]], the Sharif of Mecca was overthrown by the Saud family, and Mecca was incorporated into Saudi Arabia.<ref name="encarta">[https://web.archive.org/web/20091028055612/http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761577367/Mecca.html "Mecca"] at [[Encarta]]. (Archived) 1 November 2009.</ref> Under Saudi rule, much of the historic city has been demolished as a result of the Saudi government fearing these sites might become sites of association in worship besides Allah (''[[Shirk (Islam)|shirk]]''). The city has been expanded to include several towns previously considered to be separate from the holy city and now is just a few kilometers outside the main sites of the Hajj, Mina, Muzdalifah, and Arafat. Mecca is not served by any airport, due to concerns about the city's safety. It is instead served by the [[King Abdulaziz International Airport]] in [[Jeddah]] (approx. 70&nbsp;km away) internationally and the [[Ta'if Regional Airport]] (approx. 120&nbsp;km away) for domestic flights.{{citation needed|date=September 2020}}

The city today is at the junction of the two most important highways in all of the Saudi Arabian highway system, Highway 40, which connects the city to Jeddah in the west and the capital, [[Riyadh]] and [[Dammam]] in the east and Highway 15, which connects it to [[Medina]], [[Tabuk, Saudi Arabia|Tabuk]] and onward to [[Jordan]] in the north and [[Abha]] and [[Jizan]] in the south. The Ottomans had planned to extend their railway network to the holy city, but were forced to abandon this plan due to their entry into the [[First World War]]. This plan was later carried out by the Saudi government, which connected the two holy cities of Medina and Mecca with the modern [[Haramain high-speed railway]] system which runs at 300&nbsp;km/h (190&nbsp;mph) and connects the two cities via Jeddah, King Abdulaziz International Airport and [[King Abdullah Economic City]] near Rabigh within two hours.{{citation needed|date=September 2020}}

The [[Haram (site)|haram area]] of Mecca, in which the entry of non-Muslims is forbidden, is much larger than that of Medina.

====1979 Grand Mosque seizure====
{{See also|Grand Mosque seizure}}
On 20 November 1979, two hundred armed dissidents led by [[Juhayman al-Otaibi]], [[Grand Mosque Seizure|seized the Grand Mosque]], claiming the Saudi royal family no longer represented pure Islam and that the [[Masjid al-Haram]] and the Ka'bah, must be held by those of true faith. The rebels seized tens of thousands of pilgrims as hostages and barricaded themselves in the mosque. The siege lasted two weeks, and resulted in several hundred deaths and significant damage to the shrine, especially the [[Al-Safa and Al-Marwah|Safa-Marwah]] gallery. A multinational force was finally able to retake the mosque from the dissidents.<ref>{{cite news|date=28 August 2007|title=The Siege of Mecca|publisher=Doubleday(US)|url=http://www.siegeofmecca.com|access-date=3 August 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141018060953/http://www.siegeofmecca.com/|archive-date=18 October 2014}}
</ref> Since then, the Grand Mosque has been expanded several times, with many other expansions being undertaken in the present day.

====Destruction of Islamic heritage sites====
{{Main|Destruction of early Islamic heritage sites in Saudi Arabia}}

[[File:Makkah_Aerial_View.jpg|thumb|300px|right|Mecca, as seen from [[Jabal al-Nour]]. [[Abraj Al Bait|Mecca Clock Tower]] is visible in the skyline.]]
Under Saudi rule, it has been estimated that since 1985, about 95% of Mecca's historic buildings, most over a thousand years old, have been demolished.<ref name="independent" /><ref name="independent.co.uk">[https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/the-destruction-of-mecca-saudi-hardliners-are-wiping-out-their-own-heritage-501647.html 'The destruction of Mecca: Saudi hardliners are wiping out their own heritage'] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110119151341/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/the-destruction-of-mecca-saudi-hardliners-are-wiping-out-their-own-heritage-501647.html|date=19 January 2011}}, The Independent, 6 August 2005. Retrieved 17 January 2011</ref> It has been reported that there are now fewer than 20 structures remaining in Mecca that date back to the time of Muhammad. Some important buildings that have been destroyed include the house of [[Khadija bint Khuwaylid|Khadijah]], the wife of Muhammad, the house of [[Abu Bakr]], Muhammad's birthplace, and the Ottoman-era [[Ajyad Fortress]].<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20090310011511/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/shame-of-the-house-of-saud-shadows-over-mecca-474736.html 'Shame of the House of Saud: Shadows over Mecca'], The Independent, 19 April 2006 | archived from the original on 10 March 2009</ref> The reason for much of the destruction of historic buildings has been for the construction of hotels, apartments, parking lots, and other infrastructure facilities for [[Hajj]] pilgrims.<ref name="independent.co.uk" /><ref>{{Cite web|last=Bsheer|first=Rosie|date=20 December 2020|title=How Saudi Arabia obliterated its rich cultural history|url=http://www.middleeasteye.net/opinion/saudi-arabia-obliterated-rich-cultural-history|access-date=2022-01-17|website=Middle East Eye|language=en}}</ref>

====Incidents during pilgrimage====
{{main|Incidents during the Hajj}}
Mecca has been the site of several incidents and failures of crowd control because of the large numbers of people who come to make the Hajj.<ref>{{cite news|date=27 December 2006|title=What is the Hajj? ("Hajj disasters")|publisher=BBC|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/4180965.stm|url-status=live|access-date=18 January 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090124121049/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/4180965.stm|archive-date=24 January 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|date=17 December 2007|title=History of deaths on the Hajj|publisher=BBC|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/4607304.stm|url-status=live|access-date=18 January 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090610220505/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/4607304.stm|archive-date=10 June 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Ruthven|first=Malise|title=Islam in the World|year=2006|isbn=978-1-86207-906-9|page=10|publisher=Granta Books |author-link=Malise Ruthven}}</ref> For example, on 2 July 1990, a pilgrimage to Mecca ended in tragedy when the ventilation system failed in a crowded pedestrian tunnel and 1,426 people were either suffocated or trampled to death in a [[1990 Hajj stampede|stampede]].<ref>[https://www.expressandstar.com/days/1976-2000/1990.html Express & Star] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303200651/http://www.expressandstar.com/days/1976-2000/1990.html|date=3 March 2016}}. ''Express & Star''. Retrieved 3 February 2013.</ref> On 24 September 2015, 700 pilgrims [[2015 Mina stampede|were killed]] in a stampede at [[Mina, Saudi Arabia|Mina]] during the stoning-the-Devil ritual at Jamarat.<ref>{{cite news|title=Over 700 Dead, 800 Injured in Stampede Near Mecca During Haj|publisher=NDTV|url=http://www.ndtv.com/world-news/at-least-100-dead-390-hurt-in-stampede-during-haj-in-saudi-arabia-say-officials-1221489?pfrom=home-lateststories|url-status=live|access-date=24 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150925103415/http://www.ndtv.com/world-news/at-least-100-dead-390-hurt-in-stampede-during-haj-in-saudi-arabia-say-officials-1221489?pfrom=home-lateststories|archive-date=25 September 2015}}</ref>

====2027 total solar eclipse====
Mecca will experience a [[Solar eclipse of August 2, 2027|total solar eclipse]] on Monday, 2 August 2027, for a duration of 5 minutes and 8 seconds.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Total Solar Eclipse on August 2, 2027: Path Map and Times |url=https://www.timeanddate.com/eclipse/map/2027-august-2 |access-date=2024-03-23 |website=www.timeanddate.com |language=en}}</ref>