Answer:
For thousands of years, it was considered a holy site by almost every religion in the area, the reason why isn't known. It was a central place for pagans to come and worship their multiple gods.
Explanation:
Even before Islam, Mecca was an important site of pilgrimage for the Arab tribes of north and central Arabia. Although they believed in many deities, they came once a year to worship Allah at Mecca. During this sacred month, violence was forbidden within Mecca and this allowed trade to flourish. Saudi Arabia is actually the hearth of Islam, since the city of Mecca was where Muhammad encountered the angel Gabriel and became Allah's prophet in 610 CE (Regional Geography of the World: Globalization, People, and Places (v. 1.0)).
