18 July 2010
TAIF - The Board of Senior Ulema has decided to keep the borders of the Madina Haram in their current state.
The decision came during its last meeting held in Taif, after wide discussions and differences of opinion among members on the eastern and western sides that have been established according to the opinions of the Ulema (scholars).
An informed source said the northern and southern borders of the Madina Haram have been set according to a Prophet's saying that the Haram comes between mounts Eer and Thawr.
The source said some members wanted to reconsider the decision issued by the Board of Senior Ulema under the chairmanship of the late Sheikh Muhammad Bin Ibrahim Aal Al-Sheikh, then Grand Mufti of the Kingdom, on whose basis the current borders were defined, while other members insisted that the borders remain in place.
The same source said the matter was decided after field studies conducted by a committee comprising a number of members of the Board of Senior Ulema including Dr. Muhammad Bin Muhammad Al-Mukhtar, Dr. Abdullah Bin Muhammad Al-Mutlaq, Sheikh Abdullah Bin Sulaiman Al-Manee', Dr. Ahmad Seer Al-Mubaraki, Dr. Abdul Kareem Bin Abdullah Al-Khudhair and Sheikh Muhammad Bin Hassan Aal Al-Sheikh.
The source said the committee met with a number of historians, researchers, antiquities specialists and people interested in Madina Haram's heritage.
Experts from the Taiba and Islamic universities and related government authorities also worked with the committee.
In another development, the Board of Senior Ulema has postponed studying the prospect of building pilgrims' residences on the foothills of Mina.
The issue will be discussed at the next meeting, scheduled to be held in Riyadh on Dec. 7, (1st of Muharram, 1432H). A committee has been formed to follow up on the subject.
TAIF - The Board of Senior Ulema has decided to keep the borders of the Madina Haram in their current state.
The decision came during its last meeting held in Taif, after wide discussions and differences of opinion among members on the eastern and western sides that have been established according to the opinions of the Ulema (scholars).
An informed source said the northern and southern borders of the Madina Haram have been set according to a Prophet's saying that the Haram comes between mounts Eer and Thawr.
The source said some members wanted to reconsider the decision issued by the Board of Senior Ulema under the chairmanship of the late Sheikh Muhammad Bin Ibrahim Aal Al-Sheikh, then Grand Mufti of the Kingdom, on whose basis the current borders were defined, while other members insisted that the borders remain in place.
The same source said the matter was decided after field studies conducted by a committee comprising a number of members of the Board of Senior Ulema including Dr. Muhammad Bin Muhammad Al-Mukhtar, Dr. Abdullah Bin Muhammad Al-Mutlaq, Sheikh Abdullah Bin Sulaiman Al-Manee', Dr. Ahmad Seer Al-Mubaraki, Dr. Abdul Kareem Bin Abdullah Al-Khudhair and Sheikh Muhammad Bin Hassan Aal Al-Sheikh.
The source said the committee met with a number of historians, researchers, antiquities specialists and people interested in Madina Haram's heritage.
Experts from the Taiba and Islamic universities and related government authorities also worked with the committee.
In another development, the Board of Senior Ulema has postponed studying the prospect of building pilgrims' residences on the foothills of Mina.
The issue will be discussed at the next meeting, scheduled to be held in Riyadh on Dec. 7, (1st of Muharram, 1432H). A committee has been formed to follow up on the subject.
By Abdullah Al-Dani
© The Saudi Gazette 2010
