Saudi Arabia: Person leaps from upper floor of Grand Mosque in Mecca
No immediate word on circumstances of incident or the motive
Cairo: A person has been hospitalised after jumping down from an upper floor of the Grand Mosque in Mecca, Islam’s holiest place, police said.
The mosque’s special security force had handled an incident of a person throwing himself from an upper floor of the place, the Saudi General Directorate of Public Security said Tuesday.
“The person was transferred to a hospital to receive the necessary medical treatment and completion of disciplinary procedures,” the directorate added in an X post.
There was no immediate word on circumstances of the incident or the motive for the person’s act. Nor was the individual‘s nationality given.
The incident was reported as the Grand Mosque has experienced a surge in numbers of worshippers particularly in the last 10 days of Ramadan that ends Tuesday.
Ramadan usually marks the peak season of Umrah or lesser pilgrimage at the Grand Mosque.
Saudi authorities have maximised efforts to cope with the influx of worshippers at the mosque, home to the Holy Kaaba that Muslims direct in their prayers.
As part of efforts to ease congestion at the Grand Mosque, the Saudi Ministry of Hajj and Umrah has advised pilgrims to heed patterns of cooperative behaviour. They include avoiding peak times, using public transport instead of private cars, and shifting to other mosques in Mecca to perform prayers when the Grand Mosque is packed.
More than 2 million Muslims reportedly thronged the Grand Mosque and its outer courtyards Friday night corresponding to the 27th night of Ramadan, believed to be the most likely date for Laylat Al Qadr, or the Night of Power, when the Quran was first revealed to the Prophet Mohammad (Peace Be Upon Him).
Laylat Al Qadr is the most venerated night of the Islamic calendar. The Prophet exhorted Muslims to look for it in the odd nights of the last 10 nights of Ramadan.