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What Role Did MIT Play in the Third Saudi Expansion of the Grand Mosque?

The expansion project looks to enhance the unobstructed visual access to the holy Kaaba from all directions. (AFP)
The expansion project looks to enhance the unobstructed visual access to the holy Kaaba from all directions. (AFP)
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What Role Did MIT Play in the Third Saudi Expansion of the Grand Mosque?

The expansion project looks to enhance the unobstructed visual access to the holy Kaaba from all directions. (AFP)
The expansion project looks to enhance the unobstructed visual access to the holy Kaaba from all directions. (AFP)

In the first series of reports on the third Saudi expansion of the Grand Mosque in the holy city of Makkah, Asharq Al-Awsat delved into the development of the subject with the issuance of the royal decree to form a team of experts comprised of Saudi university professors and other global specialists.

This initiative was undertaken to scrutinize the proposed expansion project in the year 2008.

Furthermore, Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Higher Education established the aforementioned team, in accordance with the royal decree, tasked with assessing the state of the Grand Mosque during that period.

This assessment encompassed comprehensive studies and on-site surveys.

Additionally, the team undertook the evaluation of the proposed design through a dual-layered review process – one conducted at the local level by the Ministry's team, and the other at the international level by a team from the firm AECOM.

However, there exists a tale narrating the technological vision of the Grand Mosque, developed by a team of professors and researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

In addition, prominent architects, global consulting firms, and select Saudi universities and institutions took part in formulating architectural concepts and design approaches for the expansion.

They also presented forward-looking perspectives for the future of the Grand Mosque.

In this investigation, Asharq Al-Awsat continues to shed further light on various architectural and design aspects, as well as future visions presented by firms and universities.

The article explores how some of these ideas were harnessed in the development of the chosen design under the royal decrees. Moreover, it delves into the features of the technological systems put forth by MIT.

Despite being allotted just a short span of two months, the architectural innovators, global firms, and local organizations, who were called upon to present their proposals, delivered a diverse range of visionary concepts.

Among them were preliminary ideas and sophisticated architectural approaches, all of which engaged with key aspects of the expansion project.

Subsequently, some of these ideas and approaches were incorporated into the design development, a point we will delve into further.

They, however, shared numerous factors that included enhancing the unobstructed visual access to the holy Kaaba from all directions, expanding the prayer areas while considering an increase in their capacity, and enlarging the Mataf (circumambulation area around the Kaaba) and the Sa’i (the ritual walk between the hills of Safa and Marwah).

The expansion featured a specialized avenue for presenting forward-looking perspectives, with the intention of formulating comprehensive and optimal solutions for the long-term development of the Grand Mosque.

These perspectives were developed with an unconstrained urban approach, aimed at discovering positive impacts in the holistic consideration of the Grand Mosque’s evolving needs for enhancements and extensions, leading to ideal future-oriented solutions.

Seven distinguished global architects, alongside King Saud University, contributed their proposed visions, which revolved around a holistic vision for Makkah’s broader development.

To emphasize the scale of the endeavor by the technical teams, we will highlight the key aspects of the cutting-edge technological vision put forth by a team of over ten professors from MIT.

Their research encompassed the presentation of pertinent and implementable technological systems for the expansion project of the Grand Mosque.

Following the exhaustive efforts of the technical team during the project’s initial phase, involving meticulous and comprehensive studies, conceptualizations, architectural and urban visions, as well as artistic and technological considerations, the outcomes were presented for review to King Abdullah.

The proposal by King Saud University emerged as the most suitable option. Subsequently, on February 21, 2009, Royal Directive No. 1692 was issued, stipulating “the proposed design by King Saud University for the expansion of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, for the Grand Mosque shall serve as the foundational blueprint for initiating the design process.”

“This selection is attributed to its alignment with the existing state of the Grand Mosque... with the understanding that it will undergo further development to align with the developmental, design, and operational visions of the study team, and may subsequently be adopted and executed by the Saudi Binladin Group.”

With that, the first phase of the team’s work on the project was successfully concluded, culminating in the issuance of the aforementioned royal decree.

It is imperative at this juncture to emphasize the team’s relentless effort and dedication to achieving the desired outcomes through a collaborative and integrated approach, executed with the utmost professionalism and in accordance with defined methodologies and frameworks.

The term “team,” which has been referred to by various names in different documents and reports such as “Study Team,” “Core Team,” “Ministry Team,” or “University Team” encompasses all committees and working groups operating under the purview of the Ministry of Higher Education.

Why was the design proposed by King Saud University chosen?

According to Dr. Abdulaziz bin Saad Al-Muqrin, former Dean of the College of Architecture and Planning at King Saud University, during the presentation to King Abdullah at the College of Marine Sciences in Jeddah, architectural and future visions were showcased by both global and local consulting firms as well as other colleges.

It was scheduled that each design proposal by the involved team would be summarized in 3-5 minutes.

However, the proposal presented by King Saud University extended to over 20 minutes.

This was due to King Abdullah taking the time to listen to the detailed explanations of the university’s proposal, which was presented by Dr. Abdullah Al-Othman, the university's director.

The detailed presentation highlighted the merits of the proposed design from various perspectives.

The prolonged duration of the review may have been a testament to the emphasis placed on the design's ability to preserve the identity of the Grand Mosque and its integration with past expansions, potentially more so than other designs.

The university reinforced this by presenting its vision for future expansions, illustrating the possibility of continuing future expansions along the same trajectory.

Furthermore, the university’s representatives engaged in discussions with the technical team and subsequently with relevant authorities regarding the nomination of the university’s design idea.

It was considered the most suitable option due to its alignment with previous expansions and its potential for expedited implementation.

A committee comprising the Ministry of Higher Education, the General Presidency for the Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques, and the Saudi Binladin Group was established to formulate recommendations.

The proposed urban and architectural concept from King Saud University was rooted in the notion that the Grand Mosque is not solely a place of prayer, but fundamentally encompasses the Mataf and the Sa’i.

Along with the paramount role of prayer, it is these acts of Tawaf and Sa’i that distinguish this mosque from others, including the Prophet’s Mosque.

Furthermore, it was essential to strike a balance between these core functions while alleviating operational burdens. This entailed elevating safety, security, and spirituality for visitors to the Grand Mosque, and ensuring the sustainability of the mosque as a mega facility. The proposed design approach can be summarized as follows:

The expansion would consist of three separate, somewhat distinct building blocks, each with three levels – ground, first, second, and rooftop – that are interconnected on upper floors. This configuration offers a high degree of operational flexibility based on different occasions and ensures effective crowd management and safety measures.

Integrated within the sides of these blocks are facilities catering to worshippers and prayer, strategically positioned to reduce movement between prayer areas and service zones. Courtyards are interspersed within these blocks to infuse natural light across all levels of the expansion.

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Features

Russia, China Unlikely to Back Iran Against US Military Threats

A man stands by the wreckage of a burnt bus bearing a banner (unseen) that reads "This was one of Tehran’s new buses that was paid for with the money of the people’s taxes,” in Tehran's Sadeghieh Square on January 15, 2026. (AFP)
A man stands by the wreckage of a burnt bus bearing a banner (unseen) that reads "This was one of Tehran’s new buses that was paid for with the money of the people’s taxes,” in Tehran's Sadeghieh Square on January 15, 2026. (AFP)
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Russia, China Unlikely to Back Iran Against US Military Threats

A man stands by the wreckage of a burnt bus bearing a banner (unseen) that reads "This was one of Tehran’s new buses that was paid for with the money of the people’s taxes,” in Tehran's Sadeghieh Square on January 15, 2026. (AFP)
A man stands by the wreckage of a burnt bus bearing a banner (unseen) that reads "This was one of Tehran’s new buses that was paid for with the money of the people’s taxes,” in Tehran's Sadeghieh Square on January 15, 2026. (AFP)

While Russia and China are ready to back protest-rocked Iran under threat by US President Donald Trump, that support would diminish in the face of US military action, experts told AFP.

Iran is a significant ally to the two nuclear powers, providing drones to Russia and oil to China. But analysts told AFP the two superpowers would only offer diplomatic and economic aid to Tehran, to avoid a showdown with Washington.

"China and Russia don't want to go head-to-head with the US over Iran," said Ellie Geranmayeh, a senior policy expert for the European Council on Foreign Relations think tank.

Tehran, despite its best efforts over decades, has failed to establish a formal alliance with Moscow and Beijing, she noted.

If the United States carried out strikes on Iran, "both the Chinese and the Russians will prioritize their bilateral relationship with Washington", Geranmayeh said.

China has to maintain a "delicate" rapprochement with the Trump administration, she argued, while Russia wants to keep the United States involved in talks on ending the war in Ukraine.

"They both have much higher priorities than Iran."

- Ukraine before Iran -

Despite their close ties, "Russia-Iranian treaties don't include military support" -- only political, diplomatic and economic aid, Russian analyst Sergei Markov told AFP.

Alexander Gabuev, director of Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, said Moscow would do whatever it could "to keep the regime afloat".

But "Russia's options are very limited," he added.

Faced with its own economic crisis, "Russia cannot become a giant market for Iranian products" nor can it provide "a lavish loan", Gabuev said.

Nikita Smagin, a specialist in Russia-Iran relations, said that in the event of US strikes, Russia could do "almost nothing".

"They don't want to risk military confrontation with other great powers like the US -- but at the same time, they're ready to send weaponry to Iran," he said.

"Using Iran as a bargaining asset is a normal thing for Russia," Smagin said of the longer-term strategy, at a time when Moscow is also negotiating with Washington on Ukraine.

Markov agreed. "The Ukrainian crisis is much more important for Russia than the Iranian crisis," he argued.

- Chinese restraint -

China is also ready to help Tehran "economically, technologically, militarily and politically" as it confronts non-military US actions such as trade pressure and cyberattacks, Hua Po, a Beijing-based independent political observer, told AFP.

If the United States launched strikes, China "would strengthen its economic ties with Iran and help it militarize in order to contribute to bogging the United States down in a war in the Middle East," he added.

Until now, China has been cautious and expressed itself "with restraint", weighing the stakes of oil and regional stability, said Iran-China relations researcher Theo Nencini of Sciences Po Grenoble.

"China is benefiting from a weakened Iran, which allows it to secure low-cost oil... and to acquire a sizeable geopolitical partner," he said.

However, he added: "I find it hard to see them engaging in a showdown with the Americans over Iran."

Beijing would likely issue condemnations, but not retaliate, he said.

Hua said the Iran crisis was unlikely to have an impact on China-US relations overall.

"The Iranian question isn't at the heart of relations between the two countries," he argued.

"Neither will sever ties with the other over Iran."

Features

Beirut’s Commodore Hotel, a Haven for Journalists During Lebanon’s Civil War, Shuts Down

People stand outside the closed Commodore hotel, in Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP)
People stand outside the closed Commodore hotel, in Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP)
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Beirut’s Commodore Hotel, a Haven for Journalists During Lebanon’s Civil War, Shuts Down

People stand outside the closed Commodore hotel, in Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP)
People stand outside the closed Commodore hotel, in Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP)

During Lebanon’s civil war, the Commodore Hotel in western Beirut's Hamra district became iconic among the foreign press corps.

For many, it served as an unofficial newsroom where they could file dispatches even when communications systems were down elsewhere. Armed guards at the door provided some sense of protection as sniper fights and shelling were turning the cosmopolitan city to rubble.

The hotel even had its own much-loved mascot: a cheeky parrot.

The Commodore endured for decades after the 15-year civil war ended in 1990 — until this week, when it closed for good.

The main gate of the nine-story hotel with more than 200 rooms was shuttered Monday. Officials at the Commodore refused to speak to the media about the decision to close.

Although the country’s economy is beginning to recover from a protracted financial crisis that began in 2019, tensions in the region and the aftermath of the Israel-Hezbollah war that was halted by a tenuous ceasefire in November 2024 are keeping many tourists away. Lengthy daily electricity cuts force businesses to rely on expensive private generators.

The Commodore is not the first of the crisis-battered country’s once-bustling hotels to shut down in recent years.

But for journalists who lived, worked and filed their dispatches there, its demise hits particularly hard.

“The Commodore was a hub of information — various guerrilla leaders, diplomats, spies and of course scores of journalists circled the cafes and lounges,” said Tim Llewellyn, a former BBC Middle East correspondent who covered the civil war. “On one occasion (late Palestinian leader) Yasser Arafat himself dropped in to sip coffee with” with the hotel manager's father, he recalled.

A line to the outside world

At the height of the civil war, when telecommunications were dysfunctional and much of Beirut was cut off from the outside world, it was at the Commodore where journalists found land lines and Telex machines that always worked to send reports to their media organizations around the globe.

Across the front office desk in the wide lobby of the Commodore, there were two teleprinters that carried reports of The Associated Press and Reuters news agencies.

“The Commodore had a certain seedy charm. The rooms were basic, the mattresses lumpy and the meal fare wasn’t spectacular,” said Robert H. Reid, the AP’s former Middle East regional editor, who was among the AP journalists who covered the war. The hotel was across the street from the international agency’s Middle East head office at the time.

“The friendly staff and the camaraderie among the journalist-guests made the Commodore seem more like a social club where you could unwind after a day in one of the world’s most dangerous cities,” Reid said.

Llewellyn remembers that the hotel manager at the time, Yusuf Nazzal, told him in the late 1970s “that it was I who had given him the idea” to open such a hotel in a war zone.

Llewellyn said that during a long chat with Nazzal on a near-empty Middle East Airlines Jumbo flight from London to Beirut in the fall of 1975, he told him that there should be a hotel that would make sure journalists had good communications, “a street-wise and well-connected staff running the desks, the phones, the teletypes.”

During Israel's 1982 invasion of Lebanon and a nearly three-month siege of West Beirut by Israeli troops, journalists used the roof of the hotel to film fighter jets striking the city.

The parrot

One of the best-known characters at the Commodore was Coco the parrot, who was always in a cage near the bar. Patrons were often startled by what they thought was the whiz of an incoming shell, only to discover that it was Coco who made the sound.

AP’s chief Middle East correspondent Terry Anderson was a regular at the hotel before he was kidnapped in Beirut in 1985 and held for seven years, becoming one of the longest-held American hostages in history.

Videos of Anderson released by his kidnappers later showed him wearing a white T-shirt with the words “Hotel Commodore Lebanon.”

With the kidnapping of Anderson and other Western journalists, many foreign media workers left the predominantly-Muslim western part of Beirut, and after that the hotel lost its status as a safe haven for foreign journalists.

Ahmad Shbaro, who worked at different departments of the hotel until 1988, said the main reason behind the Commodore’s success was the presence of armed guards that made journalists feel secure in the middle of Beirut’s chaos as well as functioning telecommunications.

He added that the hotel also offered financial facilities for journalists who ran out of money. They would borrow money from Nazzal and their companies could pay him back by depositing money in his bank account in London.

Shbaro remembers a terrifying day in the late 1970s when the area of the hotel was heavily shelled and two rooms at the Commodore were hit.

“The hotel was full and all of us, staffers and journalists, spent the night at Le Casbah,” a famous nightclub in the basement of the building, he said.

In quieter times, journalists used to spend the night partying by the pool.

“It was a lifeline for the international media in West Beirut, where journalists filed, ate, slept, and hid from air raids, shelling, and other violence,” said former AP correspondent Scheherezade Faramarzi.

“It gained both fame and notoriety,” she said, speaking from the Mediterranean island of Cyprus.

The hotel was built in 1943 and kept functioning until 1987 when it was heavily damaged in fighting between Shiite and Druze militiamen at the time. The old Commodore building was later demolished and a new structure was build with an annex and officially opened again for the public in 1996.

But Coco the parrot was no longer at the bar. The bird went missing during the 1987 fighting. Shbaro said it is believed he was taken by one of the gunmen who stormed the hotel.

Features

Key Details of Greenland’s Rich but Largely Untapped Mineral Resources

Houses covered by snow are seen on the coast of a sea inlet of Nuuk, Greenland, on Monday, Jan. 12, 2026. (AP)
Houses covered by snow are seen on the coast of a sea inlet of Nuuk, Greenland, on Monday, Jan. 12, 2026. (AP)
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Key Details of Greenland’s Rich but Largely Untapped Mineral Resources

Houses covered by snow are seen on the coast of a sea inlet of Nuuk, Greenland, on Monday, Jan. 12, 2026. (AP)
Houses covered by snow are seen on the coast of a sea inlet of Nuuk, Greenland, on Monday, Jan. 12, 2026. (AP)

The Danish and Greenlandic foreign ministers will meet US Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday after President Donald Trump recently
stepped up threats to take over Greenland.

The autonomous territory of Denmark could be useful for the ​United States because of its strategic location and rich mineral resources. A 2023 survey showed that 25 of 34 minerals deemed "critical raw materials" by the European Commission were found in Greenland.

The extraction of oil and natural gas is banned in Greenland for environmental reasons, while development of its mining sector has been snarled in red tape and opposition from indigenous people.

Below are details of Greenland's main mineral deposits, based on data from its Mineral Resources Authority:

RARE EARTHS
Three of Greenland's biggest deposits are located in the southern province of Gardar.

Companies ‌seeking to ‌develop rare-earth mines are Critical Metals Corp, which bought the ‌Tanbreez ⁠deposit, ​Energy Transition Minerals, ‌whose Kuannersuit project is stalled amid legal disputes, and Neo Performance Materials.

Rare-earth elements are key to permanent magnets used in electric vehicles (EV) and wind turbines.

GRAPHITE
Occurrences of graphite and graphite schist are reported from many localities on the island.
GreenRoc has applied for an exploitation license to develop the Amitsoq graphite project.
Natural graphite is mostly used in EV batteries and steelmaking.

COPPER
According to the Mineral Resources Authority, most copper deposits have drawn only limited exploration campaigns.

Especially interesting are the underexplored areas ⁠in the northeast and center-east of Greenland, it said.

London-listed 80 Mile is seeking to develop the Disko-Nuussuaq deposit, which has ‌copper, nickel, platinum and cobalt.

NICKEL
Traces of nickel accumulations are numerous, ‍according to the Mineral Resources Authority.

Major miner ‍Anglo American was granted an exploration license in western Greenland in 2019 and has ‍been looking for nickel deposits, among others.

ZINC
Zinc is mostly found in the north in a geologic formation that stretches more than 2,500 km (1,550 miles).

Companies have sought to develop the Citronen Fjord zinc and lead project, which had been billed as one of the world's largest undeveloped zinc resources.

GOLD
The most prospective ​areas for gold potential are situated around the Sermiligaarsuk fjord in the country's south.

Amaroq Minerals launched a gold mine last year in Mt Nalunaq in ⁠the Kujalleq Municipality.

DIAMONDS
While most small diamonds and the largest stones are found in the island's west, their presence in other regions may also be significant.

IRON ORE
Deposits are located at Isua in southern West Greenland, at Itilliarsuk in central West Greenland, and in North West Greenland along the Lauge Koch Kyst.

TITANIUM-VANADIUM
Known deposits of titanium and vanadium are in the southwest, the east and south.

Titanium is used for commercial, medical and industrial purposes, while vanadium is mainly used to produce specialty steel alloys. The most important industrial vanadium compound, vanadium pentoxide, is used as a catalyst for the production of sulfuric acid.

TUNGSTEN
Used for several industrial applications, tungsten is mostly found in the central-east and northeast of the country, with assessed deposits in the south and west.

URANIUM
In 2021, ‌the then-ruling left-wing Inuit Ataqatigiit party banned uranium mining, effectively halting development of the Kuannersuit rare-earths project, which has uranium as a byproduct.