One square meter of land around the Grand Mosque in Makkah could cost as much as SR250,000, according to a land value appraisal commission tasked with determining due compensation payable for government land acquisitions for the Haram expansion. Owners of the properties seized for the project of the Haram Library will receive over SR800 million in compensation for the library project. Due compensation price per one square meter around the Haram area ranged between SR80,000 to SR250,000, said Mansour Abu Rayash, head of the real estate committee at the Makkah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI). The 4,000 sq.m. Haram Library project overlooking the Haram plazas required 50 properties to be seized, he said. The library will be designed after the Haram architecture, he said. Once finished, it will be handed over to the General Presidency of the Two Holy Mosques Affairs. Makkah Mayoralty has been in charge of acquiring land for the Haram expansion projects. Compensations will be paid through the Ministry of Finance. The Saudi government has spent more than SR70 billion on the expansion of the Two Holy Mosques in recent years. The current expansion projects around the Haram are expected to be completed within 10 years. – Okaz __
