RIYADH: The Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage (SCTH) is gearing up for this year’s Souq Okaz.
Major preparations have been completed to hold the popular festival in the same location: The ancient Souq Okaz in Taif. The 11th edition of the week-long event will open July 12 under the patronage of King Salman.
The organizing committee announced the festival’s events and activities. Earlier, addressing a press conference, Prince Sultan bin Salman, SCTH president and head of the festival’s supervisory committee, said Souq Okaz has significantly progress over past 10 years.
Archaeological discoveries by excavation teams indicate that site has seen civilizations dating back to the Stone Age, and that the souq was an important event in the history of the region before Islam. It was a cultural, social, economic and political gathering of Arabs during which the area’s language evolved, and not merely an opportunity for trade.
Souq Okaz was also a place for reconciliation, declaring of war, ending hostilities, adjudicating trade disputes and a place for announcing alliances between Arab tribes, researcher said.