After seizing Kufa, Abdul-Malik sent his troops under the leadership of Hajjaj ibn Yusuf to conquer and suppress Ibn Zubayr in Mecca. Hajjaj surrounded Mecca for several months. Ibn Zubayr and his troops sought refuge in the vicinity of the Holy Ka’ba, but Hajjaj ordered his troops to launch rocks at them. As a result, the Ka’ba was entirely damaged. Abdullah ibn Zubayr was finally killed, and his caliphate terminated after about nine years. After a long unrest in Hijaz and Iraq, Abdul-Malik was able to unify them under a single government.
