Authorities in Makkah have decided to close four hotels in the holy city for having violated regulations, Al-Madinah newspaper reported.

A committee composed of  representatives of the Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities (SCTA), Saudi Electricity Co. and local police took action against two hotels in the Haram in Misfala district and one hotel each at Al-Mansour Street and Aziziyah district for repeatedly violating regulations on accommodating Umrah pilgrims. The hotels, whose names were not revealed by authorities, were operating without licenses. Initially the establishments were fined between SR8,000 and SR10,000, but they failed to rectify their infractions and were subsequently shut down indefinitely.

Muhammad Al-Baqami, a representative of the SCTA, said the commission posted notices on the doors of these businesses on Saturday informing them of a Tuesday deadline to fix their infractions or be shut down. The hotels were operating under potentially dangerous situations, but the SCTA did not clarify the specific infractions.

“The owners of these hotels ignored these warnings and dared to put the life of Umrah pilgrims in danger by allowing them to continue staying there. As part of the closure, Saudi Electricity Co. has disconnected power supply to these hotels,” he said, adding that one of the hotel owners had locked the front door, but continued to accommodate pilgrims through a back entrance.

Arab news