We heard from the hadith of Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him) that when they conquered the land of Sham, they would find bathrooms facing the qiblah. He said:

The questioner : We heard from the hadith of Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him) that when they conquered the land of Sham, they would find bathrooms facing the qiblah. He said: So we would turn away from them and seek forgiveness from Allah. Is it not permissible to face the qiblah when relieving oneself, even if that is in houses? And what about the hadith of Ibn 'Umar and his sighting of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) relieving himself in the open space facing the qiblah?

The Shaykh : As for his statement regarding the first hadith of Jabir, that they came to Sham and found toilets built toward the Ka'bah, the hadith is not from Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him), but rather from Abu Ayyub al-Ansari. He said: "They came to Sham and found toilets built toward the Ka'bah", meaning their fronts were toward the Ka'bah. He said: "So we would turn away from them and seek forgiveness from Allah, Mighty and Majestic". And Abu Ayyub is the one who narrated from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) that he said: .
And as for the hadith of Ibn 'Umar, he used to say: . The hadith of Ibn 'Umar does not contradict the hadith of Abu Ayyub (may Allah be pleased with him), because the hadith of Abu Ayyub is about facing the qiblah, while the hadith of Ibn 'Umar is about turning one's back to it, and there is a difference between the two. Based on this, we say in clarifying the ruling of the issue: In the open space, it is not permissible to face the qiblah or turn one's back to it with excrement or urine. And in buildings, it is permissible to turn one's back to it, but not to face it. Based on this, if one's bathrooms are built facing the Ka'bah, let him adjust them so that the Ka'bah is on his right or on his left. Yes.

The questioner : May Allah reward you with good. This is your brother M A 'A 'A saying.