In early June 1916, most of the
Ottoman garrison had gone to
Taif, a hill station near Mecca accompanying Ghalib Pasha, the governor of
Hijaz. Only 1,000 men were left to defend Mecca. Many of them were asleep in barracks in the valley on June 10 when
Hussein bin Ali, Sharif of Mecca, fired a shot into the air from the window of the Hashemite palace signaling the beginning of the Arab Revolt. Hearing this his 5,000 supporters started firing on Turkish troops in three fortresses overlooking the holy city, and at the Jirwall barracks on Jeddah road. The attack upon the Turkish forces was sudden and their acting commanding officer was unaware that a revolt had started. As Sharif's and the Ottoman banners were of same colour, the Turkish commander could not see the difference, and telephoned Sharif
Hussein about the situation and was told the reason and was told to surrender. He refused. The Ottoman troops responded by bombarding Mecca from the heights; during the bombardment, they hit the
Kaaba and set fire to the veil that covered it. This incident was later exploited by the propaganda of the
Great Arab Revolt to attempt to demonstrate the impiety of the Ottomans and the legitimacy of the revolt as a holy war. at Safa corner adjacent to the
Masjid al-Haram. On the third day, Hamidia, the Ottoman Government Office, was captured, as well as the Deputy Governor. Now the captive Deputy Governor ordered his remaining
Turkish troops to surrender. They refused. A stalemate resulted. Sir
Reginald Wingate sent two artillery pieces from Sudan via Jeddah, with trained Egyptian gunners. They breached the walls of the Turkish fort. The Sharifian army attacked and the fate of the defenders was sealed. On July 4, 1916, the last Turkish resistance in Mecca, Jirwal barracks, capitulated, after three weeks of stubborn resistance. ==Results==