Omar Monassar

“In 1979, while Saudi Arabia was in the midst of a process of
liberalization, a group of religious fanatics seized the Grand Mosque in
Mecca. The Masjid al-Haram houses the kaaba, considered the holiest sitefor Muslims. This incident was a national trauma and transformative for al Saud, who reacted to it with an increased religious traditionalism enforced by the government and spearheaded by the ulama. Ambassador Smith credited a clear transformation to what occurred in 1979. “Saudi Arabia started going ultraconservative after the takeover of the Holy Mosque.”
― Ellen R. Wald, Saudi, Inc.