Saudi king launches 5 projects within third expansion for grand mosque in Makkah

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud launched on Saturday evening five projects within the Third Saudi Expansion for the Grand Mosque in Makkah, including expansion building, squares, tunnels, services building and first ring road, Saudi Press Agency said.

"This historic expansion include 1,470,000 square meters. The Grand Mosque accommodates more than 1,600,000 worshipers with 78 gates at the ground floor surrounding the expansion building," said Dr Abdurrahman bin Abdulaziz Al-Sudais, President General of the Grand Mosque and the Prophet's Mosques.

Saudi Minister of Finance Dr. Ibrahim bin Abdulaziz Al-Assaf delivered a speech in which he pointed out that the Third Saudi Expansion came as an extension of the previous historic expansions.

Al-Assaf added that the expansion projects included expansion building, Masaa and Mataaf expansions, external squares, tunnels, services building, hospital, transportation stations, bridges to the Grand Mosque, infrastructure and first ring road.

He stressed that the figures and statistics indicate to greatness of this achievement aiming to provide comfortable and tranquility for the worshipers.

Al-Assaf added that the main building of the expansion project consists of six floors for praying, 680 electric escalators and 24 elevators for the people with special needs and 21,000 toilets and places of ablution.