The Al-Quds Mosque (Arabic: مسجد القدس, romanized: Masjid al-Quds; German: al-Quds-Moschee) was a Sunni Islam mosque, located in Hamburg, Germany. The mosque was opened in 1993 and operated until 2010 when it was shut down by German security officials. The mosque was known for preaching a radical form of Sunni Islam. The al-Quds Mosque was attended by some of the September 11 attackers including Mohamed Atta, Marwan al-Shehhi, Ramzi bin al-Shibh, and Ziad Jarrah who formed the Hamburg cell.[1]
| al-Quds Mosque | |
|---|---|
 Panoramic interior of al-Quds, in 2009, prior to its closure | |
| Religion | |
| Affiliation | Sunni Islam (former) |
| Ecclesiastical or organisational status | Mosque (1993–2010) |
| Status | Closed |
| Location | |
| Location | St. Georg, Hamburg |
| Country | Germany |
  Location of the former mosque in Hamburg | |
| Geographic coordinates | 53°33′25″N 10°01′10″E / 53.55694°N 10.01944°E |
| Architecture | |
| Type | Mosque architecture |
| Completed | 1993 |
| Capacity | 400 male worshippers |
History
editThe mosque opened in 1993 and was run by the Taiba German-Arab Cultural Association.[2] It occupied a three-story building near the Hamburg Hauptbahnhof rail station in a red-light district, in the St. Georg section of Hamburg.[3]
Unlike many other mosques in Hamburg which cater to the Persian and Turkish populations, al-Quds served Hamburg's smaller Arab population.[4] Under the leadership of Imam Muhammad Fizazi (fr), the mosque preached a radical version of Sunni Islam.[3] Other leaders at the mosque have included Sheik Azid al-Kirani.[3]
The prayer room for men was located on the first floor and was able to accommodate up to 400. There was a separate prayer room for women, which was unpainted and uncarpeted.[3] On Fridays, the mosque usually had around 250 in attendance.[5]
By 2004, the mosque had, according to security authorities, become a meeting points for North Africans and Iraqi proponents of jihadism. By 2009, the mosque had become a place where members of the Salafi movement traveled to meet.[6]
2010 shut down
editThe mosque was shut down by German security officials in August 2010 amid suspicion that the mosque was again being used as a meeting place for Islamic extremists involved in the 2010 European terror plot.[7][8][9] German authorities discovered that ten members of the mosque had traveled to the border region of Pakistan and Afghanistan, and Shahab D., an Iranian at the mosque, had joined the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan.[5]
See also
edit
References
edit- ^ Grieshaber, Kirsten (August 9, 2010). "German mosque used by Sept. 11 attackers shut down". Associated Press. Retrieved August 11, 2010.
Sept. 11 ringleader Mohamed Atta as well as attackers Marwan al-Shehhi and Ziad Jarrah had studied in Hamburg and frequented the al-Quds mosque
- ^ Moore, Tristana (August 10, 2010). "Jihadi Tourism and the Closed Hamburg Mosque". Time. Archived from the original on August 28, 2010. Retrieved September 3, 2010.
- ^ a b c d Finn, Peter (September 11, 2002). "Hamburg's Cauldron of Terror". The Washington Post.
- ^ McDermott, Terry (2005). Perfect Soldiers: The 9/11 Hijackers: Who They Were, Why They Did It. HarperCollins. p. 3. ISBN 0-06-058469-6.
- ^ a b Hengst, Björn; Scheuermann, Christoph (August 9, 2010). "Hamburg Hate Preachers Lose Their Home". Der Spiegel. Archived from the original on August 18, 2010. Retrieved September 3, 2010.
- ^ "Islamismus-Experte klagt Hamburger Senat an: Integration von Muslimen gescheitert". FOCUS Online (in German). Retrieved July 15, 2018.
- ^ Esposito, Richard; Schwartz, Rhonda; Cole, Matthew; Schecter, Anna (September 29, 2010). "9/11 Mosque Continued To Produce Jihadis; German-Speaking Militants Came From Same Hamburg Mosque As 9/11 Hijackers". ABC News.
- ^ "Germany shuts 9/11 plotters' mosque in Hamburg". BBC. August 9, 2010. Archived from the original on August 17, 2010. Retrieved September 3, 2010.
- ^ "Hamburg Officials Raid Alleged Islamist Recruiting Site". Der Spiegel. August 9, 2010. Archived from the original on August 17, 2010. Retrieved September 3, 2010.
External links
edit
German mosque used by September 11 militants closed at Wikinews- "Al Qaeda in Germany". PBS, Online NewsHour. October 25, 2002. Archived from the original on January 18, 2014. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
