Ali Bin Gharsan Okaz/Saudi Gazette MAKKAH – A municipality official has said SR17 billion has been paid as compensation to property owners affected by the fourth expansion of the northern courtyard of the Grand Mosque in Makkah. Abbas Qattan, deputy mayor for projects and construction, said payment of compensations for remaining properties razed for the current phase of expansion will be completed soon. It is expected that the total compensation in all the stages of the project will reach SR100 billion. Qattan, who is also the supervisor of the project for the northern courtyard expansion, denied any delay in payment of compensation to citizens whose properties were expropriated for the project. He added that in previous stages, financial compensations were paid for expropriation of 3,950 properties. The fourth stage is considered to be the largest and comprises 1,800 properties, with the sum of compensation expected to reach SR30 billion. The project covers three districts: Shaab Amer, Jarwal and Al-Misfalah. Qattan said there are no objections from owners of real estate to expropriating their properties. He pointed out that the number of those who objected did not exceed 70 people. A five-party committee that comprises representatives of the governorate, the municipality, the courts, the Ministry of Finance and the Makkah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) assess the value of the expropriated properties fairly and in a transparent manner. He confirmed that the owners are paid immediately provided their ownership documents are complete. Qattan said the properties that have problems regarding their title deeds do not exceed 200. He said these cases have been referred to higher authorities. Qattan said a study is under way to construct tunnels under the courtyards to link the Grand Mosque with the proposed train stations. He denied plans to set up shopping centers in the courtyards. Meanwhile, a capacity crowd of more than 1 million worshipers gathered in the Grand Mosque to perform Juma prayers on the second Friday during the holy month of Ramadan.
