JEDDAH: Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah will begin an inspection tour of Madinah and Yanbu on Monday in which he will open a number of development and welfare projects.
As part of the tour, Abdullah will inspect progress of the new expansion project at the Prophet’s Mosque in Madinah. The project, ordered by the king, is being carried out at a cost of SR4.7 million.
Madinah Gov. Prince Abdul Aziz bin Majed expressed his happiness at the royal visit and said it would boost the region’s development. “King Abdullah’s visit carries a lot of glad tidings for the people of Madinah,” the governor said. The Prophet’s Mosque expansion includes installation of 182 sunshades in courtyards around the mosque for the benefit of 200,000 worshippers. A single sunshade will cover an area of 576 square meters.
The mosque’s eastern courtyard will be expanded, adding 37,000 square meters and creating additional prayer place for 70,000 worshippers.
With the completion of the new expansion project, all residential areas of old Madinah would become part the mosque complex. Researcher Tandheeb Al-Fayedi said the expansion of the Prophet’s Mosque has covered old Madinah completely.
“Some buildings that sprouted 100 years ago outside the old city have been added to the new complex,” he added. Souk Al-Manakha, an important market since olden times and which begins from Ghamama Mosque to Sabaq Mosque, has been included in the expansion.
Some of the old residential districts that are included in the new expansion are: Harrat Aghwat on the east of Haram, Bab Al-Majeedi on the north, Bab Al-Salam on the west, and Hammam Taiba on the south.
In the industrial city of Yanbu, King Abdullah will lay the foundation stone for a number of projects of the Royal Commission and the Yanbu National Petrochemical Company (YANSAB).
YANSAB is engaged in manufacturing petrochemical products such as ethylene, ethylene glycol, high-density polyethylene, low linear density polyethylene, polypropylene, butane 1, butane 2, MTBE and BTX.
Saudi Basic Industries Corp. has a 51 percent stake in the company’s SR5.625 billion capital. Saudi citizens own 35 percent of its shares.
Ajyad Hospital demolished
In a related development, the Makkah Development Authority demolished the 55-year-old Ajyad Hospital, which is located close to the Grand Mosque in Makkah. The space will add 3,000 square meters to the mosque’s courtyard and create prayer space for more than 7,000 worshippers.
The authority has started developing a new area covering 110,000 square meters southeast of the mosque to establish a modern hospital and carry out other investment projects.
