La mosquée dAbu Ghosh, Israel: une mosquée de paix dans un village palestinien de paix. ABU GHOSH, Israel - In a Holy Land rich with religious sites, the new Abu Ghosh mosque is rare - as is the hilly village from which it rises. Bankrolled largely by Chechnya and named after its former leader Akhmad Kadyrov, who was slain by Islamist militants in 2004, the glimmering shrine tells of this small Israeli Arab communitys historical ties to the restive Russian province. Abu Ghosh residents say their forbears were Chechens who came five centuries ago to then Ottoman-ruled Palestine. With the advent of modern Zionism, the villagers were quick to forge an alliance with the Jewish state founded in the war of 1948. We were raised to accept and welcome everyone, no matter what their race or religion, said Salim Jabr, the former Abu Ghosh mayor and chief fund-raiser for the $10 million mosque. (...) Turkish artisans provided woodwork and filigree for the mosque, gratis. Theres a contemporary Israeli touch, too, in the roomy, ventilated bomb shelter built into a lower floor. Yet conflict has not left much other mark on Abu Ghosh, which also has two monasteries commemorating Christian traditions holding that both Jesus and King Solomon passed through here en route to nearby Jerusalem, the latter bearing the biblical Ark of the Covenant. Nowadays, weekend pilgrims have to jostle with Israelis who clog Abu Ghoshs restaurants - one of which won a Guinness record in 2010 for the worlds biggest serving of hummus. The old road through Abu Ghosh used to connect Jerusalem to the coast, and was used by Jewish and Arab guerrillas who once battled British rule in Palestine - as well as each other. The village sided with the Jews. Our leaders took a long view, and understood that Jewish people are really smart and that if they would have a state, it could advance the whole region in terms of economy, industry and culture, Jabr said.(...) Villagers contributed some funds for the mosque, Jabr said, but 60 percent of the budget came from Chechens who conditioned their donations on the construction of four minarets. jpost/National-News/In-Israel-an-Arab-village-builds-mosque-with-Chechen-help-333410
Posted on: Fri, 29 Nov 2013 06:20:10 +0000
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