King’s initiative to expand two holy mosques hailed

Most Umrah pilgrims, who come from different parts of the world, visit Madinah as part of their spiritual journey to pray at the Prophet’s Mosque and visit historical places in the holy city.
Arab News met with a group of Algerian pilgrims to get their impressions. “I am very happy to visit Madinah, the city of the Prophet,” said Abdul Aziz Khattab. “It gave me an opportunity to pray at the Prophet’s Mosque,” he said.
Khattab said there are millions of Muslims around the world who want to visit this holy place. “I am thankful to Allah for blessing me to be here and I pray that other faithful also get this golden opportunity.”
Ahmed Abul Qassim, also an Algerian, said he was overjoyed for having gotten the chance to visit Makkah and Madinah.
Abul Qassim highlighted the remarkable progress achieved by Madinah during the past few years. “I have visited this holy city several times in the past when I came to Saudi Arabia for Haj and Umrah. The streets have become wider; there are several five-star hotels near the mosque; and new malls have been established.”
He praised Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah for giving his instructions to expand the Grand Mosque in Makkah and the Prophet’s Mosque in Madinah in order to create space for the growing numbers of pilgrims and worshippers.
Khaled Abdul Monem, another Algerian, said Muslims in his country love Saudi Arabia and its generous people. “We appreciate the Kingdom’s efforts in supporting countries and people at times of difficulty,” he said.