His Majesty King Abdullah on Tuesday inaugurated the King Hussein Ben Talal Mosque, joining hundreds of worshippers for noon prayers at this place of worship, which will now serve as the country's official mosque.



King Abdullah donated the 60-dunum plot on which the mosque was built as well as the cost of construction.


Sultan Qaboos of Oman contributed to the project and sent an envoy, Hareb Al Saeed, to attend today's official opening.



As the largest mosque in the country, it can hold 5,500 worshippers.



The new mosque will replace King Abdullah I Mosque in Abdali, which since the 1980s has been the official mosque from which live broadcasts of Friday sermons and Ramadan iftar activities were aired on Jordan Television.



The four-minaret mosque, built in the Islamic architectural style prevalent in Bilad Sham, has a primary praying area characterized by vaulted ceilings and Umayyad-style ornamentation carved in Jordanian stone.



Engineering Adviser at the Royal Hashemite Court, Ammar Malhas, whose department supervised the construction of the landmark monument, said Khalid Azzam, the Egyptian architect who designed the facility, toured Jordan to study the dominating Islamic architectural style in the country. He came to the conclusion that arches, an integral part of the country's architectural identity, were inevitable in the design.



The Palace official said a local contractor implemented the project, while a team from Balqa Applied University's Islamic Arts Faculty created the mihrab, the focal point in a mosque that directs worshippers towards Mecca.



The façade of the mihrab is made of rare kinds of wood, which were used for the first time in 300 years in the Islamic world, according to Malhas.



Meanwhile, a covered 2,000sq.m outdoor praying area with a similar 10-metre-high vaulted ceiling can accommodate 2,500 worshippers.



Directly above part of the outdoor and indoor halls is a two-wing 350sq.m area dedicated as praying hall for women, with a capacity for 350 worshippers.



Offices, lecture halls, a library and other facilities are on the first floor of the mosque, which sits above King Hussein Park in the Dabouq neighbourhood.



The mosque also hosts the Hashemite History Museum, which displays belongings related to the Prophet in the possession of Jordan such as a letter he sent Hercules, king of the Byzantines, in the early days of Islam.



The inauguration ceremony was planned to coincide with celebrations to mark the birth anniversary of Prophet Mohammad.



Towards the end of the event, the King honored a group of Jordanian donors, each of whom built a mosque worth more than JD100,000. He bestowed on them the Al Hussein Decoration for Distinguished Contribution that varied between the first and second orders.



Speakers at the event included Minister of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs Abdul Fattah Salah, who highlighted the role of the Hashemites in defending Islam.



In his remarks, Sheikh Hani Fahs, a member of the Higher Shiite Council of Lebanon, focussed on unity among Muslims and criticised extremists whose destructive ideas, he said, cause division in the ranks of the Islamic nation.



Renowned scholar Zaghloul Najjar said as Muslims mark the birth anniversary of the Prophet, they should learn lessons from his history and abide by the teachings of Islam, which holds human dignity in high esteem.



In a related development, the King gave instructions for mosque imams to receive financial assistance to help towards their marriage costs, an initiative launched by His Majesty more than two years ago.



Royal Court Chief Salem Turk presented the cash aid to the imams later on Tuesday.

The Jordan Times