The Ajyad Fortress, an 18th Century Ottoman monument overlooking the main mosque complex in Mecca, was demolished this month by Saudi Arabian government order. It will be replaced by a residential, tourist and commercial center to be built by the Bin Laden family construction company. The Saudi decision has led Turkey, which regards the Ottoman fortress as part of its cultural heritage, to liken the demolition to that of several ancient Buddha statues by the Taliban in Afghanistan. Turkey further claims that the Saudi government promised they would preserve the fortress as they developed the area around the mosque and the Turkish Minister of Culture, Istemihan Talay, said that the deed ?has distanced us from viewing our ties as friendly.? The Turkish press is filled with invective against the Saudi Arabia over the matter, including references to ?cultural genocide? and attempts to erase the Turkish period from Arabian history.
The Saudi daily Okaz questioned the Turkish attachment to the Ottoman site, since, Okaz insisted, the founder of modern Turkey, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, turned his back on the country?s Islamic heritage. Saudi Arabian newspapers are carrying quotes from official Saudi sources, insisting that Turkey stay out of what is an internal Saudi affair. The demolition of the Ajyad Fortress, Saudi officials said, was necessary to accommodate the millions of pilgrims who visit Mecca every year. In any case, comments the Asharq al-Awsat daily, the fortress is to be reconstructed elsewhere in Mecca, as the Turkish government was aware all along. Al-Hayat claims that, in fact, the Turks never objected to the removal of the fortress and that when they had requested preservation of other Ottoman construction in Mecca, Saudi Arabia complied. One Saudi columnist went so far as to write that Turkish objections to the demolition of ?the military fortress, whose historical value is no more than that of the Khiam detention center built by Israel during its occupation of south Lebanon? [is] to turn the world against Saudi Arabia by likening it to the Taliban, and to settle old and new scores with Riyadh.?
The Saudi daily Okaz questioned the Turkish attachment to the Ottoman site, since, Okaz insisted, the founder of modern Turkey, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, turned his back on the country?s Islamic heritage. Saudi Arabian newspapers are carrying quotes from official Saudi sources, insisting that Turkey stay out of what is an internal Saudi affair. The demolition of the Ajyad Fortress, Saudi officials said, was necessary to accommodate the millions of pilgrims who visit Mecca every year. In any case, comments the Asharq al-Awsat daily, the fortress is to be reconstructed elsewhere in Mecca, as the Turkish government was aware all along. Al-Hayat claims that, in fact, the Turks never objected to the removal of the fortress and that when they had requested preservation of other Ottoman construction in Mecca, Saudi Arabia complied. One Saudi columnist went so far as to write that Turkish objections to the demolition of ?the military fortress, whose historical value is no more than that of the Khiam detention center built by Israel during its occupation of south Lebanon? [is] to turn the world against Saudi Arabia by likening it to the Taliban, and to settle old and new scores with Riyadh.?