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| Britain |
| 'Mega mosque' initiative abandoned |
| 2010-01-19 |
| The program to build a huge mosque next to London's Olympic site was brought to an end by Newham council yesterday. The Mosque was meant to provide accommodation for 12,000 worshipers and would have been the largest Muslim place of worship of Europe. The council may also impose a compulsory purchase of the land, since a provisional mosque has been unlawfully operating there for three years. The project was supported by Tablighi Jamaat, who have 80 million followers across the world. Tablighi Jamaat is a proselytising organization that adopts a strict interpretation of Islam. Despite the fact they have denied partaking in terrorist activities, intelligence agencies have recognized links between this group and British terrorists. Newham Council's decision was highly criticized by the Muslim Council of Britain who condemned the expulsion and described the ruling as "unfounded hostility and hysteria". However, others that had been calling for a stop to the project saw their efforts pay off yesterday. The local community and Christian religious groups have actively opposed the plan since 2007. A petition including over 48,000 signatures was presented to the Government against the project. Several Muslim groups have also supported the Council's decision and efforts to counter youth radicalisation. They declared that a mosque should be the result of a "community effort" rather than the project of one group. |
| Posted by:tipper |
| #1 "Where's your mega-God now?" |
| Posted by: mojo 2010-01-19 17:54 |