Grand Mosque Seizure

Date: November 20, 1979 • Location: Mecca, Saudi Arabia

This milestone marked the outbreak and beginning of this historic period, which spanned 1979.

Armed insurgents attacked and took over the Masjid al-Haram in Mecca, declaring that one of their leaders was the Mahdi, the prophesied redeemer of Islam.

The Grand Mosque seizure took place between 20 November and 4 December 1979 at the Grand Mosque of Mecca in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the holiest site in Islam. The attack was carried out by up to 600 militants led by Juhayman al-Otaybi, a Saudi Islamist opposed to the monarchy, belonging to the Otaibah tribe. The insurgents identified themselves as "al-Ikhwan", referencing the Arabian militia that had played a role in the early formation of the Saudi state in the early 20th century. Scholars refer to them as Juhayman's Ikhwan.