9 min listen
The Siege of Mecca
FromWitness History
ratings:
Length:
9 minutes
Released:
Nov 20, 2017
Format:
Podcast episode
Description
In 1979 Islamic militants seized control of the Grand Mosque in Mecca, the holiest site in Islam. Hundreds were killed as Saudi security forces battled for two weeks to retake the shrine. The militants were ultra-conservative Sunni Muslims who believed that the Mahdi, the prophesied Redeemer, had emerged and was a member of their group. The BBC's Eli Melki spoke to eyewitnesses who were inside the Grand Mosque during the siege.
Photo: Fighting at the Grand Mosque in Mecca after militants seized control of the shrine, November 1979 (AFP/Getty Images)
Photo: Fighting at the Grand Mosque in Mecca after militants seized control of the shrine, November 1979 (AFP/Getty Images)
Released:
Nov 20, 2017
Format:
Podcast episode
Titles in the series (100)
Black in the USSR: Robert Robinson, a black American engineer, spent 43 years in the USSR against his will. by Witness History