Authored by:
Zafar Bangash
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©The Open Press Limited
1988
British Library Cataloguing
in Publication Data
Bangash, Zafar
The Makkah
massacre and future of the Haramain. 1.
ISBN 0-905081-50-1
The Open Press (Holdings) Limited
The Open Press Limited 6
The Open Press Limited
The Open Press (M) SON BHD
3 Lorong 1A/71-G
Petaling Jaya
Printed
and bound in
Cover design by: Sultan Hasan Khan
Contents
Foreword .......................................... V
Prelude to massacre: Makkah
under siege ......................................... 1
From
culprit to victim:
the propaganda game
................................ 13
Why was the Haram's sanctity violated
................ 35
The tribe from Dar'iyyah ............................ 39
The Qur'anic view of
Hajj ............................ 57
Acts of desecration in the Haram ..................... 71
The future of the Haramain .......................... 77
Eyewitness accounts ................................. 87
Index .............................................. 103
Foreword
Hajj is one of
the fundamental pillars of Islam. Every Muslim yearns to perform the Hajj once in a life-time. Many use their life's
savings in order to make the journey to the House of Allah. Each
year at least two million Muslims
gather in Makkah in the largest single gathering of
mankind anywhere in the world to
perform the Hajj.
Allah subhanahu
wa ta'ala
in His Infinite Wisdom and Mercy has declared
the Haram the sacred sanctuary. No profanities or lewdness are permitted within its precincts. Those who seek
protection within its boundaries are safe. The hujjaj
(pilgrims) who come to the House of Allah
are assured complete safety and protection by the
Creator Himself. Along with performing the manasik (ritluals)
of Hajj, Allah aubhanahu wa
ta'ala has also ordained that Mus/lims
must proclaim their dissociation from the mushrikeen
during the Hajj.
Yet, it was precisely during such a proclamation in Makkah
last year that hundreds of hujjaj were
gunned down or beaten to death by the Saudi security forces. Several thousand
others were injured. The sanctity of the Haram was violated and
the security of the hujjaj was
trampled upon, in complete violation of the Qur'anic
injunctions. Why?
This question has continued to agitate the Muslims since the massacre in Makkah on July 31, 1987. The assault on the guests of Allah has also brought into focus the question of the control and
administration of the Haramain. Should the
Haramain the
two holy cities of Makkah and
While no Muslim
has publicly stated so far that
religion must be separated from politics, there are many, especially among the
ruling elites, who want to reduce Islam to
mere rituals. The manner in which mosques throughout the Muslim world,
with the exception of
But this is not universally shared by all
Muslims. In fact a more dynamic view holds
that the present jahili system must be
replaced by the Islamic system as laid down in the Qur'an
and exemplified by the sunnah
of the Prophet Muhammad, upon whom be peace. This trend also believes in the Hajj as a dynamic
activity and an occasion to foster true Islamic brotherhood by
proclaiming the dissociation of the believers
from the mushrikeen.
This book not only provides a detailed account of last year's tragedy
in Makkah but also examines the background to the
emergence of the House of Saud. It was placed in
control of the Haramain by the British
in order to prevent
the re-emergence of Islam in its dynamic, global role. Under the cover of'guardians of the Haramain', the
House of Saud has served, first British, and now
American, imperial designs to the detriment of Islam and the Muslims.
The Makkah
massacre has also led to much debate and renewed demands in the Ummah that the
Haramain must be taken out
of Saudi control. On the outcome of this debate will depend the future of the
Ummah.
This book is an attempt to add to the
understanding of the issues involved in this debate.
Zafar Bangash
Ramadan 12, 1408 April 29, 1988
Prelude to Massacre:
Makkah Under Siege
By midday, the Makkah sun gets scorching hot in
summer. Temperatures soar to the mid-forties and nearly touch the 50 degree
centigrade mark. On that fateful Friday afternoon on July 31, it was 46°C as
the hujjaj (pilgrims) poured out of the Masjid al-Haram after Juma' prayers. By the time I made it through the crowded
doors of the Haram into the equally-crowded streets, it
was 1:30 p.m.
The Masjid al-Haram or Haram as it is usually called is situated in a valley. There
are stark, barren hills on three sides: south, east and north. Only the western
side is open and slopes gently away from the Haram
into the crowded Makkan streets. The hills on the
other three sides are today inexorably succumbing to concrete blocks that are
being erected all around the Haram.
On the north-west side, a flight of stairs leads up from the Haram towards the steeply rising street. It peaks near
We walked up the steep incline to the top of the plateau and down
Throng of pilgrims, taxis and scores of military trucks had already created a
traffic jam at this point on
It was generally known throughout Makkah that the
Iranian hujjaj had called for a unity march - they
called it Bara'at min al-Mushrikeen
(dissociation from the mushrikeen, which is a Qur'anic term), to start from
As our bus inched its way in the sweltering heat with horns blaring, I saw
scores of military trucks, ordinary passenger buses and even vans packed with
soldiers lined up on both sides of the street. At every few undred
yard intervals, tents were erected in car parks and other empty spaces in which
more soldiers lounged. The police force was also out in strength but
surprisingly, it did not carry guns. There were several big black tear gas
trucks parked at strategic locations. There was also exceptionally heavy
military activity around the Makkah municipality
building as we passed behind it heading north. A number of buildings had
soldiers posted on top of them. And of course, helicopters hovered overhead. Helicopters
are on duty in Makkah, Mina and Arafat all the time
during Hajj but there was unusual helicopter activity that afternoon around
The military and National Guards had arrived in Makkah
on the evening of July 30, a day prior to
the march. By Friday morning, the security
forces had taken up positions behind the tall General Post Office building. Saudi intelligence agents had set
up their tents behind Masjid al-Jinn. The Makkah municipality building served as a field command centre for Lieutenant General Mansour Khayyat, who was nominally in charge of operations and had come
with the forces from
Friday is a holiday in most Muslim countries, including
Sacrilege
in the Haram
By 4:30 p.m. thousands of hujjaj were
gathered in
Hujjatul-Islam Mahdi Karrubi, though a soft-spoken man, delivered his speech
with emotion and fervour. He first outlined the Qur'anic injunction of dissociation from the mushrikeen and then explained that this was particularly
emphasized for the time of Hajj. He also took issue with the assertion that
there should be no politics in Hajj. Hujjatul-Islam Karrubi stressed that Islam
recognized no such distinctions. He outlined the Islamic
Republic's stand on global issues with specific reference to the presence of
the
There were more slogans after the speech by Hujjatul-Islam
Karrubi as the gathering was asked to organize itself
to start the march. Hundreds of war-wounded in wheelchairs, many without limbs,
led the procession which started by about 6 p.m. The women were arranged on the
right and men on the left. There were four rows of volunteers joining hands in
a human chain that stretched all the way along
At this point, Agha Murtazaifar
announced on the loudspeaker that people should pay attention to an important
announcement. He declared that through divine intervention, a
The procession had barely moved along the street for ten minutes when armed
Saudi security personnel, wielding clubs as well as guns, blocked
As the procession was blocked by Saudi security forces from going forward, some
of the organizers came in front to talk to them. While the Iranians insisted
that the procession must proceed according to the original agreement, the
Saudis quite bluntly told them that they could not go any further and must
disperse. At the rear, other organizers, quite oblivious of the blockade in
front, were urging the marchers, over the loudspeakers, to keep moving forward
in an orderly fashion. Gentle Iranian persuasions with the Saudis failed to
yield results or budge them. Voices began to grow louder and tempers started to
rise. From the rear, the procession was still inching its way forward pushing
the marchers closer to the security personnel until they stood eyeball-to-eyeball.
Then all of a sudden, from behind the Saudi forces, rocks and bottles started to
rain in on the marchers. This was a most unexpected and unpleasant turn of
events. As if on cue, people on the third and fourth levels of the car park as
well as on the
Far from the Saudi security forces stopping this unprovoked attack, they joined
in beating up the marchers. They waded into the crowd swinging their clubs
violently. They did not care who got hit. They attacked viciously, as if
letting out a rage bottled-up inside them for years. Most of their clubs fell
on the crippled in wheelchairs sending them crashing to the ground. Many of
these people, without limbs, fell out of their chairs and got trampled under
foot by those trying to escape from the attack.
When the Saudi security forces moved towards the war-crippled in wheelchairs, some
young Iranians tried to block their attack. One pilgrim, in particular, in a
clean white dress, stood in front of a club-swinging soldier. Perhaps he was
trying to protect his crippled brother, a cousin or maybe just a friend. As he
stretched his arms out, the soldier's club swung wildly and came smashing on
his head. He fell over the wheelchair and both he and the handicapped person
went crashing on to the pavement. Other soldiers also rushed forward and
started to beat both of them up as they writhed in pain on the ground.
In another area of the attack, a woman tried to shield an elderly lady (her
mother perhaps?) but both were knocked to the ground.
Did they get trampled in the melee or manage to get up? How many women were
knocked over like this and trampled to death nobody knows for sure. Similarly, women
and old men, who were either hit by concrete blocks or fell down in the
scuffles, got trampled in the stampede. Amid the screams and waitings of women, clubs continued to land on their heads. In
their zeal, the Saudis attacked even some Turkish pilgrims who were standing
outside their building. Some of them ran into their building and brought out
knives that they began to attack the Saudis with.
It was at this juncture that some young Iranians started to grapple both with
the Saudi 'civilians' as well as the security forces. But they were no match
for the well-armed Saudis. The Iranians were not only completely unarmed but
they were also not expecting an attack of this magnitude. There had been
scuffles with Saudi security forces during previous years' demonstrations but
they were of a minor nature. Always displaying a great deal of fortitude and
patience, the Iranians considered those encounters as part of the price they
had to pay for awakening the Ummah. But these were
not scuffles. Here was a full-scale, well-coordinated and pre-planned attack. They
were left with no choice but to defend themselves as best they could. But bare
hands could not stop the rocks, bottles, concrete blocks or clubs. Even so, the
Iranians did manage to grapple with some Saudis and knocked them to the ground.
What particularly upset the Iranians was the manner in which the women and
crippled people were being attacked and beaten up. The Iranians also turned their
banner sticks into clubs to defend themselves. These were particularly
effective against blocking attacks from the Saudi forces. Sensing that the
Iranians were beginning to improvise and match their weapons (clubs), some
Saudis turned on their heels and fled. But this was only a temporary respite. In
fact, it was a signal for the National Guards and the military to spring into
action.
Immediately hundreds of National Guards armed with M-16 rifles and submachine
guns poured out of their trucks, vans and armoured
personnel carriers parked behind the Post Office building and into the street. At
the same time tear gas and suffocating gas trucks, parked south of the blockade,
started to fire shells into the massive crowd. A number of shells landed in the
middle of the section where the women were huddled. The effect was devastating.
People began to writhe, unable to see or breathe. The crowd was so massive and
packed so tight as they tried to push back up
Among the more than 500 dead were 208 women, at least six Palestinian pilgrims,
one Pakistani and some of other origins. The injured included the hujjaj of all countries Turkish, Lebanese, Afghans, East
Africans, Canadians, Pakistanis, Indians, etc. It is not clear at what precise
moment the order to the Iranians went out to stop resisting but as soon as the
machine guns started blazing, people already dazed, sat down and put their
hands on their heads. The gunfire continued for a while, but around Maghrib time, which was then at 7:10 p.m. in Makkah, the shooting stopped. The Saudi forces, however, continued
to attack the hujjaj, especially the Iranians, with
clubs. Those who were standing came in for special treatment. A contingent of
Saudi soldiers would rush a few Iranians, surround them and start to beat them
up. Such attacks continued for at least another hour. The Iranians in this area
were not allowed even to stand up for prayers.
But giving up the resistance did not end the attack on the Iranian hujjaj. Those who had managed to escape from the scene were
now being hunted and beaten up. The Saudi security forces started to go from
door to door, knocking and demanding that all Iranians come out. In one house, a
pilgrim from
In fact, the Saudis appeared so angry that they even attacked Iranian
ambulances that came to pick up the wounded and dead. Not one Iranian ambulance
was left undamaged. Their windshield and window glasses were smashed by batons
or rifle butts, doctors and nurses were pulled out of them and attacked, and in
one case, a Saudi soldier shot an ambulance driver through the head, killing
him instantly. The Saudis even dragged out dead bodies and the wounded from
ambulances. In one particularly grisly case, as two Iranian women, both badly
wounded but still alive, were about to be driven away in an ambulance, the
Saudis sprayed gasoline on it and set it on fire. The women were burnt alive
inside the van.
All around, the wailing of women, crying for a mother, sister, brother, son or
husband shot dead, could be heard. These voices were drowned periodically by
the sirens of ambulances as they moved back and forth. The drone of military
vehicles added to the din.
Operation
Clean-up and Cover-up
The killing ground near Masjid al-Jinn was a mess. The ground was littered with
rocks, shoes, chadors, water flasks, torn down banners, including some
with the kalimah on them, and sticks,
as well as hundreds of bodies lying in the street. Most were sprawled on the
burning pavement in odd positions as they had fallen or been trampled, many of
them women covered in black or white chadors. There was a heavy smell in
the air a mixture of pungent gas, gunpowder and burning gasoline.
Soon
after the shooting stopped, the ambulances arrived to evacuate the dead and
wounded. The Saudis were also pushing non-Iranian hujjaj
off the streets ordering them to go to their hotels/apartments. The
clearing-up order had a purpose. The Saudis were anxious to clean up the mess. There was also a lot of blood
on the street. After all, more than 500 people had been killed and 4,713 were
wounded. There were pools of blood here and there. In some places the
blood had trickled and caked in the
pavement. There was also blood splashed on the walls of Masjid
al-Jinn.
Squads of cleaning crews in their bright orange uniforms
and Allah signs on their backs appeared on the
streets. While they set about picking up the slippers, banners, stones and
sticks, the Iranians were still picking up their dead and wounded.
The last of the dead or wounded were removed from the
scene by about midnight. It was incredible how life then suddenly returned to
its 'normal' hustle and bustle which characterizes Makkah
during the time of Hajj. The only unusual sight was the presence of armed Saudi
soldiers posted outside government buildings banks, offices, etc. Also, all
telephone offices in the vicinity of the march route the area of Makkah north of the Haram were
closed. (I had tried to get to a telephone office to phone my family in
Another unpleasant outcome of the carnage was that, contrary
to all Islamic injunctions, the Saudis posted armed guards on all entrances to
the Haram as well. The sight of armed Saudi guards, with
fingers on the trigger casting menacing looks at every pilgrim entering the Haram, was most disturbing. Searches also became more
intense. At each entrance, guards, two, three or even six, would pounce on a
pilgrim searching bags, pockets and frisking everyone.
So nervous were the Saudis that every item of necessity umbrellas, water
flasks, glasses, scissors and even wallets were considered 'dangerous'. The hujjaj were ordered to leave one or more of these items
outside the entrance, depending upon the whim of each Saudi guard. The hundreds of thousands of people entering
and leaving the Haram daily, coupled with the Saudis'
disorganization, not only caused delays but meant that any item left outside
was never recovered. The loss of umbrellas and water flasks was particularly
distressing in the scorching heat.
Notes
1: Crescent
International,
2: See Appendix, p.99.
No sooner had the slaughter ended, than the Saudis launched their propaganda
campaign. But even before the blood of the martyrs had been washed away from
the streets, a number of Arab rulers had rushed in their congratulations and
messages of support for the House of Saud. Hosni Mubarak of Egypt, King Hasan of Morocco, King Husain of
Jordan and Saddam Husain of Iraq all condemned Iran
without even waiting to hear the complete story.[1] Another entity that
congratulated the Saudis for killing so many Iranians in the precincts of the Haram was the Zionist State of
Israel. In fact, Arab News, a Saudi bulletin, proudly proclaimed that King Fahd had received a message from
There was, however, something unusual about this
campaign. The usually secretive Saudis had suddenly become open and eager to
talk. And there was a sophistication in their method
that stood in sharp contrast with their characteristic clumsiness. The millions
of hujjaj who go for Hajj every year can testify to
the extraordinary delays they encounter at Jeddah airport. At times, it takes
almost ten hours to get through immigration and customs controls at Jeddah
airport. In the sixty years that the Saudis have been in control of the Hijaz far from improving the system, they have
institutionalized incompetence, clumsiness and arrogance. This is also true of
their propaganda campaign.
So
where did all the sophistication suddenly come from? The hand of
For instance, the Saudis accused the Iranians of 'rioting'.
Another version claimed that a fight had broken out between irate pilgrims of other
countries and the Iranians for blocking traffic and roads. The most
preposterous allegation was that the Iranians were going to 'take¬over' the Masjid al-Haram. The Saudi paper Okaz, whose
copies in various languages were being distributed freely in Mina, made the
most fantastic allegation. Its issue of August 6 alleged: 'The Irani pilgrims wanted to burn the Ka'aba,
declare Qum as the Ka'aba
and force the hujjaj not to visit Makkah
but Qum instead for Hajj'! This theme was also taken
up by the Saudi-paid imams and their sympathizers around the world. Some of
these people then allowed their imagination to run wild. A number of them
claimed that the Iranians were going to force the other hujjaj
inside the Haram to pledge ba'ya
to Imam Khomeini. Yet others alleged that the Iranians intended to take the Ka'aba, and particularly the Hajr-e
Aswad (the Black Stone) away from Makkah.
This was a most mischievous attempt to conjure up images of the Qaramitas' (Qarmatians') misdeeds
in the third century hijri (9th century CE). [5]
The numerous Saudi versions and how they changed need a closer examination. But
first we need to consider whether the Iranian-organized Bara'at
min al-Mushrikeen (dissociation from the infidels) march
was 'illegal'.
Pre-march Meetings
Several days prior to the Bara'at min al-Mushrikeen march, meetings between the Iranians and the
Saudis had taken place at the highest level. The Saudi minister of Hajj and Awqaf, Abdul Wahhab Abdul Was'a and his deputy, Hisham Khashoggi, had held a two-and-a-half hour meeting with Hujjatul-Islam Mahdi Karrubi, Syed Jehangiri
and Dr Muhammad Al Hadi, a member of
Subsequent to this meeting and with the understanding
that everything was agreed upon, Hisham Khashoggi and Syed Jehangiri walked the approximately three-kilometer route that the march was to take. From the
Iranians' point of view, it was a successful encounter. When the unity marches
had first started in
But on the eve of this particular march, Hisham Khashoggi requested an
urgent meeting with the Iranian officials, asking them to cancel the whole
thing. This, of course, was nothing new. The Saudis had made similar demands in
the past and the Iranians had rejected them. Following the earlier meeting, the
Iranians had prepared and distributed pamphlets throughout Makkah,
both among their own pilgrims as well as the hujjaj
of other countries inviting them to participate in the Bara'at
min al-Mushrikeen march. Instructions had also been
issued through the Iranian khabarnameh (newsletter) that
was distributed among their own hujjaj regularly. Unsuccessful
in this bid, Khashoggi then put forward three other
conditions which were also promptly rejected by the Iranians as unrealistic. He
demanded that the Iranian participation be restricted to a certain number, that
no hujjaj from other countries be invited and finally
that no one from
Pre-Planning
Saudi propaganda in the aftermath of the massacre clearly indicated a degree of
pre-planning. In fact, a number of pilgrims, including those from
Accounts given by employees of the various departments
in Makkah about instructions they received prior to
the march also indicate Saudi pre-planning to disrupt it. Each year a committee
is established to coordinate plans for the Hajj season. This committee operates
under the Hajj Organization Cell which ultimately reports to the Governor of Makkah, Prince Majid, at his
office in Aziziyya. The committee consists of heads
of the departments of water works, electricity, civil defence
(Fire Brigade), law and order, traffic (minister of the interior) and
intelligence. While the committee's operations are routine, since it is
established annually, during the last Hajj, there was intense activity and some
unusual orders. First, a directive was issued, on July 22, from the governor's
office to the electricity department to be prepared to cut off power to the
building occupied by the head of
The Saudis' Conflicting Accounts
Immediately after the massacre, the Saudi Press Agency
put out the following story, the same evening, based on an interior ministry
release: 'After today's Asr (afternoon) prayer, Friday,
6 Zul Hijja 1407, (July 31,
1987), some Iranian pilgrims gathered around the Holy Mosque in Mecca...' Quoting
an official from the ministry, the press agency went on: '...that in a matter
of minutes some Iranians gathered in a tumultuous demonstration, causing the
delay of worshippers' return to their homes and businesses. Thus, the flow of
traffic was hampered, and movement in the streets and on the roads came to a
sudden stop...'. The interior ministry official
conceded that 'matters culminated in violent clashes between the Iranians and
various pilgrims and citizens, during which, some casualties were inflicted, on
both men and women pilgrims and citizens, due to the rashness of this mob
demonstration.
During the demonstration, some Iranians burned a number
of cars and injured several persons. Security forces immediately intervened and
were able to contain the incident, disperse the demonstration and restore order'.
[8]
A casual observer not at the scene of the carnage, could not have discerned from the first Saudi
report that anything very serious had happened. Even though it conceded 'some
casualties' there was no hint of deaths and certainly not hundreds of them. The
Saudi press release also contained a number of misleading or factually
incorrect statements. First, it was claimed that 'the Iranian pilgrims gathered
around the Holy Mosque in Mecca' when in reality they were almost one-and-a-half
kilometers away and the starting point of the march
at Al-Mo'abdah Square was nearly three kilometers from the Masjid al-Haram. Second, the Saudi story suggested that the Iranian-organized
march was a spontaneous affair and that the Saudis did not know about it. There
was no mention of the pre-march Iranian meetings with the Saudi minister or the
undersecretary of the ministry of Hajj and Awqaf. Surely,
the interior ministry could not have been oblivious of those meetings.
Another misrepresentation was the alleged clash between
various pilgrims. Again, no proof was offered nor was the background of the various pilgrims, who
were supposed to
have clashed with
the Iranians, mentioned in the press release. In fact, pilgrims from
other countries, including
The statement issued by the Saudi interior ministry the
following day, August 1, 1987, only grudgingly conceded the true magnitude of
the horror perpetrated the previous afternoon in Makkah.
But this was preceded by a long, rambling statement accusing the Iranians of
obstructing 'the flow of traffic', blocking 'all exits and entrances' and
preventing pilgrims from 'circulating the Ka'aba'. The
Saudis admitted that 402 people had died. But before this admission of the
total number of deaths, the statement quite categorically said 'that none of
the security forces or the citizens shot even one bullet at any Iranian pilgrim'
(emphasis added). So how did so many people die in a matter of one hour? According
to the Saudis, they were all 'trampled under the feet of the demonstrators as
they retreated in disarray. [9] Why the demonstrators were forced to 'retreat
in disarray' was not explained.
The Saudis then provided the following breakdown of
deaths:
85 Saudi citizens and security personnel
42
pilgrims of other nationalities that resisted the procession (emphasis
added)
275 Iranian demonstrators, mostly women
The Saudi statement claimed that based on hospital
reports and the ministry of health sources, the total number of injuries was 649.
Of these, according to the Saudis, 145 were Saudi officers and citizens, 201
pilgrims from other nationalities and 303 Iranian pilgrims. The same statement
also quoted the minister of information, Ali Al-Shaer,
as saying that King Fahd had presided over an
emergency meeting held by the Council of Ministers on Saturday, August 1, 1987
in the
A review of the August 1 Saudi statement again reveals a
number of inaccuracies and misstatements. The
references to 'blocking all exits and entrances' and preventing pilgrims from 'circulating
the Ka'aba' were designed to mislead Muslim opinion
around the world. Since the procession was several kilometers
away from the Haram, the question of blocking its
entrances or preventing the pilgrims from tawwaf did
not arise at all. But the Saudis knew that they had to come up with an excuse
that would appeal to the emotions of Muslims even if it were totally false. Similarly,
they described the peaceful procession as a 'riot', trying to lay the blame on
the Iranians.
A similar but more colourful
report was given by the Saudi embassy in
The claim that not one bullet was fired was so blatantly
false that even the Saudis' masters the Americans had to contradict it. [13]
Thousands of people not only heard but saw the Saudis shoot pilgrims from the
car park, the municipality building and even from the street. Scores of bodies
with no head injuries lay in pools of blood in the street. When
The casuality figures given by
the Saudis were also inaccurate. They claimed that 85 of their own security
personnel or citizens were killed, mostly through stabbings. Most hospital
sources and others that this writer spoke to in Makkah
questioned these figures. The highest figures conceded by informed observers
were of about 100 Saudi casualties, but mostly injured. An Arabic-speaking
eyewitness recounted to this writer how he had asked a Saudi officer on the
scene about Saudi casualties. The official told him that there were only 'a few
of our own men injured'. [14] There was no hint of hundreds of Saudi
soldiers or citizens killed or wounded. The Saudi official also gloated over
the fact that the Iranians had been finally taught a lesson.
The Saudis conceded that 42 pilgrims of other
nationalities and 275 Iranians, mostly women, were killed. Again, neither the
figures nor the reasons advanced by them hold up to the facts. Frst of all, the pilgrims of other countries - among them
Palestinians, Afghans and Pakistanis -were all participants in the Bara'at min al-Mushrikeen march. They
were either beaten or shot to death by the Saudis and were not killed while 'resisting
the procession', as claimed by the Saudis. In fact, a massive demonstration had
occurred in
The figure of 275 Iranian dead is also not accurate, even
if the Saudis conceded that most of them were women. These 275 bodies were
returned to
Altogether, the Iranian dead add up to 381 and not 275 as maintained by the
Saudis. If the other figures given out by them are assumed to be accurate, the
total number of deaths could add up to 508, in one hour, or between eight or
nine deaths occurring each minute. In addition, another 4,713 people were
injured which meant nearly 80 injured per minute and one can imagine the
magnitude of the horror. Such high casualty figures seldom occur even on the
battlefield. The Saudi attack had all the characteristics of a military
operation and was carried out with one aim to cause the maximum number of
deaths and injuries. No comparable figures can be found anywhere in the world
where security forces have confronted unarmed demonstrators.
In admitting that most of the Iranian casualties were women, albeit trampled and
not shot to death according to them, the Saudis have not been able to explain a
major flaw in their propaganda campaign. How was it that the video distributed
by them around the world did not show even a single Iranian woman, dead or
alive? Surely, with seven cameras installed on various buildings, the Saudis
must have recorded every face that was in the procession. How did they miss
nearly 50 percent of the participants the women? The doctored-video that they
flashed around the world was happily projected by the western media, ever eager
to project Iran as the villain.
But the western media did not stop there. Anything that the Saudis could give
them, however wild, was accepted and immediately projected as facts. The aim was
not to reflect the truth but to show the Iranians as 'wild people' who were at
war with everybody the Iraqis, the British, the French, the Americans and now
the Saudis as well. And if they could stick this image onto them, the Americans
would then have a sound reason to take them on militarily in the Persian Gulf,
on 'behalf of the rest of the Muslim world.
Certainly there was much in the Saudi version that could be questioned. For
instance, if not a single bullet was fired, how were so many people killed? The
Saudis claimed that people fled in 'disarray'. What caused them to flee in such
a manner? And why didn't the Saudis allow the people to escape, instead of
trapping and beating them to death or shooting at them? But the western media
was not interested in exposing such contradictions in the Saudi story. It
excused itself by simply putting out a disclaimer that since no western
journalists were (or are) allowed in Makkah, they, therefore, could not give a
first-hand account. This, however, did not prevent them from projecting the
Saudi version verbatim.
Some went much further. A particularly vicious piece was produced by one G H
Jansen who claimed to be a 'Sunni' Muslim, an expert on the Middle East and
eminently qualified to write about the massacre since he had been on the Hajj
pilgrimage in 1973! Armed with such impressive credentials, Jansen gave vent to
his anti-Shi'i and anti-Iran venom. He went so far as to claim that 'every
single one of the foreign non-Iranian pilgrims may/will return to their homes as
an anti-Khomeini propagandist'. [19] How Jansen could speak on behalf of
all non-Iranian hujjaj with such confidence was not immediately clear.
Certainly, this writer, a non-Iranian and an eyewitness to the tragedy in
Makkah, totally rejects Jansen's pompous claims. Jansen went on to invite the
Americans, on behalf of the Sunni world, to deal with the Iranian menace! If it
was this sound advice that the Americans followed, then they have already
received their just, divine retribution for war-mongering against Islamic Iran
in the Persian Gulf. The stock market crash of October 19 broke the back of the
Reagan administration. This crash came exactly seven-and-a-half hours after US
warships had attacked and destroyed two Iranian oil platforms in the Persian
Gulf causing $350 million worth of damage. By the same evening, the stock market
had lost $508 billion. Within three weeks, US investors had lost $1,250 billion.
[20] US war-mongering in the Persian Gulf contributed in some degree to this
panic. Since then, news from the Persian Gulf has moved to the back pages of
western newspapers and magazines. The Reagan administration has also toned down
its belligerent rhetoric. There were no more threats of teaching 'the Iranians a
lesson'. Instead, the most hawkish member of the Reagan team, defence secretary,
Casper Weinberger, resigned within three weeks of the crash. And the US's policy
of aggression in the Gulf went into partial eclipse. [21]
But
not all coverage in the western media was so biased. An especially good piece,
by Mushahid Hussain, appeared in The Washington Post on August 20. Mushahid
Hussain, a former editor of the Islamabad-based daily, The Muslim, was also in
Makkah for Hajj. He personally witnessed the tragedy and the Saudi brutality.
Another interesting story came, of all places, out of Jerusalem under Zionist
occupation. The Jerusalem Post and Yediot Ahronot interviewed a number of
Palestinian pilgrims who had returned after performing the Hajj. All of them
confirmed that the Saudis had fired at and killed the marchers [22]. The
Toronto Star also tried to make amends by publishing an eyewitness account
challenging the Saudi version, on August 27,1987. But given the antipathy of the
west towards Islam and the Islamic Revolution in Iran, the overwhelming thrust
of the western media was (and still is) against Iran. It would be naive to
expect otherwise. But what about the media in the Muslim world?
Media
in the Muslim World
In most Muslim countries, the media is
controlled, directly or indirectly, by the regimes in power. Since all regimes
in the Muslim world are a creation of colonialism, they are antagonistic to
Islam, the Islamic movement and the Islamic Revolution in Iran. The House of
Saud, also a creation of imperialism, with all its attendant corruption, is a
natural ally of these regimes. So the official media in the Muslim world simply
reflected the line given by the regimes.
There are, however, a number of
newspapers and magazines calling themselves 'Islamic' or purporting to support
Islamic causes that are published in many parts of the world. Such publications
are generally financed by the institutions to which they belong. Many are
mouthpieces for political parties operating under the 'Islamic' label. The Urdu
daily Jasaarat of Karachi, for instance, belongs to the Jama'at-e Islami of
Pakistan. Another, the weekly Takbeer, also published from Karachi is edited by
the former editor of Jasaarat, Muhammad Salahuddin.
Most of these 'Islamic' publications
aired the Saudi version of events. This, however, should not come as a surprise.
For years, the Saudis have invested heavily in all kinds of 'Islamic' groups
around the world, through their front organizations like the Rabita al-Alam
al-Islami, Dar-ul Ifta and the World Assembly of Muslim Youth. The Saudis also
give handouts to struggling publications. Their owners, editors and the amirs of
various jama'ats are on the boards of one or the other Saudi-financed
organizations. Over the years, such publications have also come to see the Saudi
system as 'Islamic'. Thus, these 'Islamic' publications now support only the
outward forms of Islamic law but not its substantive application. Therefore,
they and their political patrons work in close tandem with such regimes as the
House of Saud and the military regime of General Zia ul-Haque in Pakistan. They
also believe that these regimes are 'Islamic' and are busy drum-beating on their
behalf. So if they simply parroted the Saudi version of the carnage in Makkah,
it was to be expected. After all it was the Saudi money that was talking. But
what was unusual was the vehemence with which they denounced Islamic Iran. In
fact, they went much further than even the Saudis in making all kinds of
allegations against the Iranian hujjaj. Throughout, their anti-Shi'i tone was
quite pronounced. Tameer-e Hayat, the bi-weekly publication of Darul-Uloom
Nadwat-ulama, Lukhnow, India, repeated the Saudi allegation that Iran had
planned to 'take-over the Haram'. [23] Al-Rashaad, the monthly
publication of Jami'at-ur-Rashaad of 'Azamgarh called the Bara'at min
al-Mushr