UK: County’s first domed mosque set to open

(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - There are dozens of mosques well established in the county, but for the first time the traditional dome and minaret familiar with the building will pierce the county’s skyline.Set among the terraced houses of Richmond Road in Gillingham, the Nasir mosque will officially open next month, becoming the first purpose built facility in the county.Currently, existing mosques in Kent are sited within converted buildings; taking on the role as a place of worship.Dr Zahid Khan, who works in nearby Wigmore, is the spokesman for the new building.He explained: “The building was the former Liberal club until it was transformed into a prayer hall in the 1970s. But it needed to be completely gutted. About 95 per cent of the building is new, only a few of the exterior walls are actually the same.“The dome and minaret have been significant to our house of God for centuries. So from a distance you will see it’s a mosque, just like you would with a church. It’s a specific shape.“There are many mosques in Kent of course, but as far as I am aware there are none with a dome or minaret.”Islam is one of the world’s fastest growing religions and the number of followers in the county continues to increase.It is estimated some 5,200 Muslims live in the Medway towns, around two per cent of the total population. Members of the Kent branch of the AMA contributed £450,000 to create the Nasir mosque which comes complete with prayer room, community rooms, disabled access and new kitchens.Dr Khan said: “All of our funding is done by local members. We are not sponsored by any political party or government or foreign body. Any activities that we conduct here in Gillingham are funded on a voluntary basis by our members.“They donate whatever they can and the enthusiasm for these types of projects is always there.”/129