The Bab al-Islam Mosque (Spanish: Mezquita Bab al-Islam; Urdu: باب الاسلام مسجد Bab-ul-Islam Masjid) is located in Tacna, a city in southern Peru. It is the only such Peruvian place of worship that is an example of Islamic architecture in the country, though it is not the only such building. Combined with the adjoining Shah Waliullah School of Sciences, it is the largest place of worship for Muslims in the entirety of the Department of Tacna. Prayers are offered in both Spanish and Arabic.[1]
History
It was built by Pakistanis who had arrived to Peru as merchants in the 1990s and were importing used cars from Japan and the United States with permission from the erstwhile Peruvian president Alberto Fujimori. The Pakistani community in Tacna grew to 95 people by 1995 and further to 500 people by the beginning of the 21st century. The complex was founded in 2000, and construction was completed by 2008. Imam Mohammad Usman was head of the Bab al-Islam Mosque in 2015.[2]
See also
References
- ^ Islamic Bulletin, Trip to Peru, Issue 14
- ^ "La vida musulmana en la ciudad heroica" [Muslim life in the heroic city] (in Spanish). 22 February 2015.
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