Mecca scholarship governed by the Hashemite Sharifs. In 930, Mecca was attacked and sacked by Qarmatians, a millenarian Ismaili Muslim sect led by Abū-Tāhir Al-Jannābī and centered in eastern Arabia. The Black Death pandemic hit Mecca in 1349. In 1517, the Sharif, Barakat bin Muhammed, acknowledged the supremacy of the Ottoman Caliph but retained a great degree of local autonomy. In 1803 the city was captured by the First Saudi State, which held Mecca until 1813. This was a massive blow to the prestige of the (Turkish) Ottoman Empire, which had exercised sovereignty over the holy city since 1517. The Ottomans
Mecca Gate Mecca Gate The Gate of Mecca, Mecca Gate or Makkah Gate ( '), also known as Qur'an Gate ( '), is an arch gateway monumental on the Makkah al-Mukkarramah road of the Jeddah–Makkah Highway. It is the entrance to Mecca and the birthplace of prophet Muhammad – signifies the boundary of the "haram" area of the city of Mecca, where non-Muslims are prohibited to enter. The Gate was built in 1979. Design was done by Dia Aziz Dia, and architect was Samir Elabd. Mecca Mayor, Osama bin Fadl al-Bar, acts as Bawabat Makkah Co. Board of Directors Chairman. Complex Bawabat