The German broadcasting Authority “Deutsche Welle” highlighted crisis of the lack of Islamic burial places in various parts of Germany, which prompts many Muslims to search for burial places in neighboring cities or to deport the body of the deceased to mother country.
In a special report published by the Authority on its website, the head of the Association of Muslim Cemeteries in the city of Wuppertal, Samir Bouaissa, said that there are more than 5 million Muslims in Germany and their number is constantly increasing, which means that more and more Muslims will die and be buried in German lands.
Bouissa added to the German Broadcasting Authority that the Muslim Community came to Wuppertal in 2008, noting that “even then it was clear that Germany needed Muslim cemeteries,” pointing out at the same time that the Association of Muslim Cemeteries in Wuppertal plans to establish the first cemetery in Germany to be run exclusively by Muslim communities.
“Deutsche Welle” stated that there are more than 30,000 cemeteries in Germany, a third of which are owned by Christian churches, while the rest is managed by local municipalities, pointing out that each of the 16 federal states in Germany has multiple and distinct burial systems.
