200 gunmen, over 1 lakh Muslims held hostage…; When armed rebels besieged Mecca’s Grand Mosque in 1979, separated Indian and Pakistani hostages to…

Mecca Big Mosque Siege: Saudi Arabia’s Mecca and Medina are opinion to be the holiest cities in Islam, revered by Muslims of all sects and denominations internationally, in particular because these cities are intently linked to the lifestyles of Prophet Muhammad. Waging battle and even carrying weapons contained in the holy sanctuary where the holy Kaaba is positioned, is opinion of a grave sin in Islam, and is exactly forbidden.

Alternatively, around Forty five years ago, Juhayman al-Otaybi, a Saudi non secular dissident, trampled upon this strict rule, when he alongside with 200 various armed attackers besieged the Masjid-al Haram or the Big Mosque in Mecca, violating the sanctity of 1 among Islam’s holiest locations. Right here’s the epic of that fateful tournament which shook the complete Muslim world to its very core.

The siege of Mecca’s Big Mosque

The Mecca Big Mosque siege started on November 20, 1979 when Juhayman al-Otaybi, a broken-down Saudi soldier-grew to turn into non secular dissident, and 200 of his armed followers took over the Big Mosque and besieged it for 2 weeks. The incident no longer totally shook the complete Muslim world, nonetheless created world shockwaves as frequent bloodshed took field at some level of the siege.

Al-Otaybi, a non secular preacher and a vehement critic of the Saudi royal family, had accumulated a substantial following over the years. On the fateful day of November 20, 1979, in the origin of Muharram, the first month in the Islamic Calendar, Otaybi, alongside with his followers, stormed the holy mosque, took worshipers hostage, and besieged the premises.

Based on experiences from the time, around 50,000 of us had gathered in the enormous Holy Kaaba complicated for Fajr (morning) prayers, nonetheless, the worshippers had no clue as to what awaited them. Al-Otaybi, and around 200 of his followers, had joined the worshippers, and as the prayers concluded, Juhayman stepped out, pushed the Imam (prayer leader) apart, and ordered of us to protect effect as his followers opened nearby coffins, revealing a large cache of weapons they'd smuggled interior.

Otaybi and his followers armed themselves and held worshippers at gunpoint, as the 40-year-former controversial non secular leader took the microphone, asking the hostages to cooperate, sustaining that he and his men contain been doing this to “attach” the Kaaba, and Saudi Arabia from the unrighteous.

Defying the attackers’ diktats, some hostages tried to obtain away as they tried to hover the mosque premises, nonetheless, the gunmen opened fire and interior an hour, succeeded in taking on the complete complicated. The rebels then climbed the minarets, barred the complete doors, and thus origin the bloody siege of Mecca’s Big Mosque which lasted for nearly about two weeks.

Reveal to Saudi king

Experts inform that the Saudi management contain been in the origin unable to clutch the gravity of the occupation of Mecca’s Big Mosque and lacked seriousness about mounting a response. On the time of the siege, then Saudi Crown Prince Fahd bin Abdul Aziz Al-Saud was as soon as on a tour of Tunisia, while Prince Abdullah was as soon as touring Morocco.

As the news of the incident broke, Saudi Police arrived at the Big Mosque nonetheless contain been greeted with a hail of bullets by the besiegers, and had to speed away to attach their lives. The assault on the Saudi Police, knowledge about the kind of weapons wielded by the attackers, and the kind correct through which they opened fire on the police officers, in the kill made the Saudi management realise that things had long past terribly ghastly.

Attackers rounded up Indian, Pakistani nationals

Based on experiences from the time, a majority of the hostages contained in the Big Mosque contain been non-Arabs, including Indian and Pakistani residents from the subcontinent, who did now not inform or keep Arabic. Upon realising this, the attackers rounded up Indian and Pakistani nationals, and separated them from the the leisure of the hostages.

A pair of folks, who knew  Arabic, Hindi, Urdu, and English, contain been picked from among Indians and Pakistanis and tasked with translating their captors’ commands to hostages from non-Arab countries.

A blood-soaked rescue operation

The Saudi regime and the dominion’s law enforcement agencies soon realised that the siege had been slightly planned and it would no longer be straightforward activity to put off the militants from the Big Mosque and rescue the hostages.

A massive operation was as soon as launched as particular forces, paratroopers, armored fashions, alongside with the Saudi Police cordoned off the sphere all the most effective method through the mosque, nonetheless the duty was as soon as monumental because of the the sheer size of the Big Mosque, which has lengthy corridors measuring heaps of of meters in size, and a large series of structures all the most effective method through the Kaaba — all of which had been occupied by Otayba and his followers, who contain been armed to the enamel.

For the first two days, Saudi forces may no longer even lunge strategy the mosque, as the attackers showered bullets on them from strategic positions, which was as soon as retaliated, turning one amongst Islam’s holiest sanctuary’s correct into a raging warzone.

Based on historical data, the Saudi Arabian authorities sought contain the good thing about Pakistan and France, who sent their forces to bolster Saudi army’s efforts to neutralise the attackers and discontinuance the siege.

Saudi sought contain the good thing about Pakistan, France

On day six of the operation, the Saudi safety forces managed to capture the courtyard of the mosque as successfully as the encompassing constructing, weakening the attackers’ grip on the premises, and forcing them to cloak interior rooms and various small chambers as a lot of them contain been gunned down.

Eyewitnesses narrating the horrifying ordeal, printed how water had started to speed out, triggering fear among the hostages. even as the rotting bodies of worshippers and attackers lay in the courtyard and various ingredients of the mosque for days. Indirectly, the siege ended on December 4, 1979 after the Saudi Military and various safety agencies killed the broad majority of the attackers and captured the the leisure, including the leader, Juhayman al-Otaybi.

Who was as soon as Juhayman al-Otaybi?

Born in al-Sajir in Saudi Arabia’s Al-Qassim Province, Juhayman al-Otaybi belonged to the Ikhwan tribe, pre-successfully-known Bedouin tribe in the Najd predicament. A lot of members of Juhayman’s had taken part in the the Battle of Sabilla at some level of the Ikhwan uprising in opposition to Saudi King Abdulaziz, including his father and grandfather.

Ikhwani tribals believed that the Saudi royals had violated the sanctity of the distinctive non secular principles as laid down by Prophet Muhammad. Increasing up, Juhayman struggled to write fluently, nonetheless loved to read non secular texts. Later, he served Saudi Arabian National Guard from 1955 to 1973.

After his service, Juhayman moved to Medina where he joined the local chapter of a hardline Islamist community identified as Al-Jamaa al-Salafiya al-Muhtasiba, and soon won an excessive amount of followers as a non secular preacher.

Juhayman al-Otaybi was as soon as sentenced to loss of life by Saudi authorities for his feature in the siege of the Big Mosque, and therefore done by beheading on January 9, 1980. His son Hathal bin Juhayman al-Otaybi, moreover serves in the Saudi National Guard, and was as soon as promoted to the rank of colonel in 2018.