Mecca fire of 1997 Mecca fire of 1997 The Mecca fire of 1997 was a fire that occurred in the tent city near Mecca in Saudi Arabia 15 April 1997, killing between 217 and 300 people. The fire erupted in the overcrowded tent city, Mina, where an estimated two million Muslim pilgrims were gathered on for the first day of the Hajj, the ritualistic pilgrimage to Mecca. The fire erupted at 11:45 a.m. (), and was caused by exploding canisters of cooking gas, according to witnesses. The fire was fanned by winds of nearly causing the destruction of an estimated 70,000 tents. Officially, 1,290
Battle of Mecca (883) seven dinars to the headmen. Five days later, on June 13, Ja'far ibn al-Baghamardi entered Mecca with approximately two hundred riders under his command. There he was met by Harun, who had returned to the city, and was reinforced with one hundred twenty horsemen, two hundred blacks, thirty Saffarid cavalrymen, and two hundred infantry from Iraq that the governor had at his disposal. After receiving further assistance from a group of Khurasani pilgrims, Ja'far decided to march out and face the troops of Ibn Tulun. The ensuing battle, which took place in the hollow of Mecca, ended in a victory