According to Niebuhr, in the 18th century a fleet of nearly twenty vessels sailed yearly from Suez to Jidda, the port of Mecca and the place of correspondence with India.
Railway construction has begun in Arabia, and in 1908 the Hejaz line, intended to connect Damascus with Mecca, had reached Medina, Soo m.
In 691 Abdalmalik (`Abdul-Malik) determined to crush his rival and sent his general Hajjaj against Mecca.
The earliest mosque erected was that at Mecca, which consisted of a great court, in the centre of which was the Ka`ba or Holy Stone.
Suez is a quarantine station for pilgrims from Mecca; otherwise its importance is due almost entirely to the ships using the canal.
