Athens’ first mosque ready to open

A marble fountain is seen on the plot in Votanikos where the Greek capital’s first state mosque is expected to start operating in May.

A marble fountain is seen on the plot in Votanikos where the Greek capital’s first state mosque is expected to start operating in May.

Works on the exterior areas have been completed and the finishing touches are being made, Kathimerini understands.

 The mosque’s mihrab – a niche in the wall indicating the direction of Mecca, toward which all Muslims pray – is in place.

Greek Education and Religious Affairs Minister Costas Gavroglou is soon expected to approve the candidate presented by the committee overseeing the prayer site’s operation for the mosque’s imam.

Earlier, the administrative committee presented Moroccan-born Zaki Mohammed as its candidate for the position of imam to the Education Minister.

The mosque, the first in the Greek capital since the end of the Ottoman empire, is expected to open its doors soon after Orthodox Easter, which falls on April 28 this year, in time for Ramadan, which starts on May 6. It will be open from half an hour before the first prayer and up to half an hour after the last, while it will operate on a 24-hour basis during Ramadan and other holidays.