Saudi team cleans Holy Kaaba's roof in 40 minutes, setting new record

RIYADH: A specialised team of Saudi men has managed to clean the Holy Kaaba's roof in just 40 minutes, successfully setting a new record, the management of the Masjid al-Haram, or the Great Mosque of Makkah in Saudi Arabia, said Tuesday.

The Masjid al-Haram's management — officially known as the General Presidency for the Affairs of the Grand Mosque and the Prophet's Mosque — mentioned on Twitter that Saudi experts completed the cleaning of the roof of the Holy Kaaba in just 40 minutes, which was "a record".

Headed by the Imam-e-Kaaba, Dr Abdulrahman bin Abdulaziz al-Sudais, the Presidency of the Two Holy Mosques, also shared on social media the pictures taken during the cleaning process.

The Saudi-led administration of the Kaaba has vowed to continue the process of cleaning the Holy Kaaba, for which a number of programmes have been set up.

The specialised team was seen wearing the ghutra, the traditional Saudi checkered headscarf, tied up with the igal, the black rope-like cord, as they took to cleaning with "latest devices and modern mechanisms provided and approved by the Presidency of the Two Holy Mosques".

'Several stages'

The periodic work, which is carried out according to a schedule, aimed to "maintain the quality and safety of marble, remove dirt and plankton, and preserve the cleanliness and lustre of the Holy Kaaba, in particular, and the Grand Mosque in general", a statement read.

Mohammed bin Musleh al-Jabri, the deputy president for technical and services’ affairs, explained that the Department of Purification and Carpets of the Grand Mosque — one of the General Administration for Technical and Service Affairs' departments — was assigned the task.

"The cleaning mechanism takes place through several stages, the first of which is sweeping the surface of the Holy Kaaba, removing dust and bird droppings, then wiping the entire surface and holder of the cladding, the wall, and the door to the surface of the Holy Kaaba from the outside with wet towels," al-Jabri said.

"Then, everything is sprayed with water and wiped again and then a drying process."