Algeria Square Mosque
Algeria Square Mosque | |
---|---|
Arabic: جامع جمال عبد الناصر | |
Religion | |
Affiliation | Islam |
Ecclesiastical or organisational status | |
Status | Active |
Location | |
Location | Algeria/Elgazayer Square, Tripoli, Tripolitania |
Country | Libya |
Location of the mosque in Tripoli | |
Geographic coordinates | 32°53′26″N 13°11′9″E / 32.89056°N 13.18583°E |
Architecture | |
Type | |
Style | Romanesque Revival |
Completed |
|
Specifications | |
Dome(s) | One |
Dome height (outer) | 46 m (151 ft) |
The Algeria Square Mosque, or Jamal Abdul Nasser Mosque (Arabic: جامع جمال عبد الناصر), is a mosque located on Algeria/Elgazayer Square (Maidan al Jazair/Maydan elgazayer) in the city centre of Tripoli, the capital of Libya. Completed as the Tripoli Cathedral in the 1920s during the Italian Libya colonial era, the building was repurposed as the mosque in c. 1970.[1]
History
[edit]In July 1970, after the rise to power of Muammar Gaddafi, the Revolutionary Council ordered the confiscation of all Italian and church property. In September of the same year, the Vicar Apostolic of Benghazi was expelled and the cathedral was closed.[2]
The cathedral was subsequently transformed into a mosque, called the Gamal Abdel Nasser Mosque or Algeria Square Mosque.[3] Due to the controversial nature of this information, and due to intentional Historical negationism by the Gaddafi regime and its unreliable sources, the official conversion may have begun later with certain parts of the cathedral changed, and then fully, and visibly completed on the exterior circa late 1990–2000. The cathedral was renamed "as Jamal Abdul Nasser Mosque" and is currently being used as a place of worship.
The former cathedral retains its overall shape, with the main basilica and separate bell tower (campanile) shape. However, the façade of the building and the interior have undergone major changes.
As of 2020[update], the mosque was open to public and can be visited.
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "Former Cathedral of the Sacred Heart (now secular) Tripoli, Libya". GCatholic.org. Archived from the original on 19 June 2020.
- ^ "The Franciscans in Libya". Order of Friars Minor. 14 May 2021. Retrieved 6 December 2024.
- ^ "Tripoli Cathedral". New Statesman. 138: 26. 2009. Retrieved 7 August 2017.
External links
[edit]Media related to Algeria Square Mosque at Wikimedia Commons