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
Muhammad in Mecca one night along with the angel Gabriel. In the first part of the journey, the "Isra", he is said to have travelled from Mecca to "the farthest mosque" (in Arabic: "masjid al-aqsa"), which Muslims usually identify with the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem. In the second part, the "Miraj", Muhammad is said to have toured heaven and hell, and spoken with earlier prophets, such as Ibrahim, Musa, and Isa. Many people were visiting Mecca on business or as pilgrims to the Kabaa. Muhammad took this opportunity to look for a new home for himself and his followers. After several unsuccessful negotiations,