Occupied Jerusalem: The Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Mosque is on the verge of completion at the Aizariya area (Bethany) in the eastern suburb of Jerusalem, which will be the biggest mosque in Palestine after Al Aqsa Mosque.
Work is currently under way at the mosque, which can accommodate 6,000 worshippers, to complete its construction and equip it for the forthcoming Eid Al Adha prayers. Regular worshippers will perform their prayers at the mosque in two months from now.
This mosque which is being established in the town of Bethany, a suburb of the city of Jerusalem, is funded and overseen by the Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Humanitarian Foundation, and it is considered to be the largest mosque built in the West Bank after the Al Aqsa Mosque, with an area of about 4,000 square metres and its two minarets will stand opposite the Al Aqsa Mosque minarets from the eastern side of Jerusalem.
A spokesman from the Foundation said that the work on this huge project will conclude very soon.
The source added that the work on the mosque is non-stop and that the project itself is among the many UAE projects in Palestine in general and in occupied Jerusalem in particular which also covers aid programmes, building schools, homes, hospitals, women’s centres, orphans and special needs shelters and other construction works for the benefit of the Palestinian people.
The source also pointed out that the Khalifa Foundation focuses on projects in Palestine to benefit the largest possible number of needy categories, and it also works on the establishment of religious, educational, health and other centres in order to help the Palestinian people perform their religious rites and benefit from health and education services.
Engineer Samir Qirsh, the contractor’s representative who is carrying out the construction works at the mosque, said the mosque is built on a large area of land which is located on a hill underpinning the construction and overlooking the main sectors of Jerusalem and Al Aqsa Mosque. Its two minarets rise to a height of 75 metres so that the eastern walls of Al Aqsa mosque are seen.
The source added that the existence of the Grand Mosque in the town of Bethany will serve more than 100,000 people who live on three sides of Jerusalem (to the east, north and south) from Ramallah to the north to Bethlehem in the south, where several neighbourhoods and Palestinian villages are located and remain an integral part of Jerusalem.
The mosque is built with natural stone, while the mosque’s mihrab (imam’s pulpit) was made in Turkey of aluminous materials so that if a candle is put into it the whole mihrab radiates light as though lit by a thousand light bulbs.
The source added that the Shaikh Khalifa mosque is prepared to accommodate 6,000 worshipers (men and women) on its first and second floors. The first floor is for males and can accommodate 4,000 worshippers while the second floor is for women and accommodates 2m000 worshippers.
The area for men is 1,650 square metres while the second floor for women covers an area of 1,000 square metres. The grand mosque has two entrances for men, one to the east and another to the west, while the women’s entrance is separate.
A large hall for memorisation of the Quran in the mosque has been attached with shelves for Quran copies and Islamic books.
The mosque consists of five floors. The first two floors will be complete for worship, while the remaining will be completed later and will be used to establish a health centre affiliated the Maqasid Charitable Hospital in Jerusalem, in addition to a public Islamic library.
