(MENAFN- Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)) By Ayyoub Khaddaj
BEIRUT, Aug 3 (KUNA) -- Al-Omari Grand Mosque stands out in the middle of downtown Beirut as a landmark depicting parts of the city history way back to the Islamic conquest during era of the Caliph Omar bin Al-Khattab.
Suhail Mneimneh, head of the Beirut Heritage Society, said in an interview with KUNA that the mosque had been built upon rubble of a Roman military compound.
The Crusaders, during their presence in the Levant in 1110 had transformed the mosque into a church until the Islamic ruler Salah Eddine Al-Ayyoubi restored its original features as a mosque.
The interior is marked with engravings and ancient stones reflecting its historic value.
Al-Omari Grand Mosque, during the 1975-1990 Lebanese civil war and the battles that had raged in downtown Beirut, was badly damaged, along with many other buildings properties in the region.
However after the civil war, a Kuwaiti woman good doer, Suad Mohammad Al-Humaidhi, gave donations for renovating the mosque. Nowadays, the three-storey mosque can accommodate some 3,000 worshippers.
It was reopened after the face-lifting, thanks to the Kuwaiti's donations on June 4, 2004, in a broad ceremony attended by Al-Humaidhi, the former Lebanese mufti and the late prime minister Rafic Al-Hariri. (end) ak.rk
MENAFN03082023000071011013ID1106777636
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.