Uwais al-Qarni Mosque

Uwais al-Qarni Mosque (Arabic: مسجد أويس القرني) was a Shi'ite mosque in Raqqa, Syria, until it was demolished by Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant on May 31, 2014.

Uwais al-Qarni Mosque
مسجد أويس القرني
The Uwais al-Qarni Mosque in 2009
Religion
AffiliationShia Islam
StatusDestroyed
Location
Location Raqqa, Syria
Architecture
TypeMosque
Completed2003

History

Dedication

It contained the shrines of Ammar ibn Yasir and Uwais Qarni, who died in the Battle of Siffin in 657, which took place around 40 km west of Raqqa. It was adjacent to the Bab al-Baghdad, another major landmark in the city.[1][2]

Construction

The original tombs were located in the old cemetery at the edge of the city. In 1988, Syrian President Hafez al Assad and the Supreme Leader of Shi'ite-majority Iran, Ayatollah Khomeini, initiated a project to develop a new mosque around the tombs. The work was completed in 2003 and a commemorative plaque credited President Bashar al Assad and Iranian President Mohammad Khatami with completing the project.[3]

Destruction

In June 2013, rebel fighters from the Wahabi/ Salafi group al-Muntasereen Billah were living in the mosque complex.[4] On March 26, 2014, the mosque was blown up by two powerful explosions and completely destroyed by Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant because it was a Shi'ite structure. More specifically, it was also built over graves and thus served as a shrine.[5][6][7][8]

See also

References
  1. Hazrat Lal Shahbaz Qalandar of Sehwan-Sharif - Page 87, Inam Mohammad - 1978
  2. Religion and politics in Central Asia under Saljûqs - Page 198, Naseem Ahmad - 2003
  3. "The Shiite crescent eclipsed". 16 April 2013. Retrieved 24 August 2014.
  4. Dziadosz, Alexander (2013-06-21). "Special Report: Deepening ethnic rifts reshape Syria's towns". Reuters. Retrieved 2016-09-19.
  5. Reuters Editorial (2014-03-26). "Islamists bomb Shi'ite shrine in eastern Syria: activists". Reuters. Retrieved 2016-09-19.
  6. "Heritage sites ravaged by Syria's war". Al Jazeera English. 2014-12-24. Retrieved 2016-09-19.
  7. Avaneesh Pandey (2013-12-26). "Al-Nusra Rebels Demolish 13th Century Tomb In Southern Syria Deemed Un-Islamic By Salafists". Ibtimes.com. Retrieved 2016-09-19.
  8. By Afp (2014-12-24). "War ravages Syria heritage sites". Business Insider. Retrieved 2020-05-09.

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