Madina's Administrative Court has asked the Ministry of Finance to justify its Estimation Committee's decision to set the value of land in the Prophet's Mosque Central Zone at between SR10, 000 and SR14, 000 per square meter. The judge made the request to a ministry representative on Tuesday during a hearing in the case of land-plot compensation filed against the Ministry and the Commission for the Development of Makkah, Madina and the Holy Sites. Owners of expropriated property, according to their lawyer Tahir Al-Bloushi, are demanding SR50, 000 per square meter, a figure five times higher than that being offered. The compensation has been accepted by some, while others have moved to the courts for a reassessment on the basis of “the importance of the area.” Al-Bloushi said no committee had been assigned to evaluate the disputed land area at Bab Al-Tammar even though it was stipulated in the Expropriation Law that such a body should exist. He said the Estimation Committee had not consulted real estate experts, constituting a failure to appreciate the possible increase in land value due to the area's investment potential. Total compensation for owners of expropriated properties in the Bab Al-Tammar area is SR1. 97 billion. – Okaz __
