Islamic Cultural Centre of Ireland

The mosque in Clonskeagh

The Islamic Cultural Centre of Ireland (ICCI; Irish: Ionad Cultúrtha Ioslamach na hÉireann) is an Islamic complex, including a mosque, in Clonskeagh, Dublin, Ireland. It is funded by the al-Maktoum Foundation of Dubai and has a Sunni orientation.

Formation

In 1992 Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Governor of Dubai and Minister of Finance and Industry in the United Arab Emirates, agreed to finance a piece of land including a building to house a school and later on agreed to sponsor the construction of an Islamic Centre on the same site.[1] At the time, 4,000 Muslims lived in Ireland.[2] Construction of the ICCI began in 1994 and it was officially opened on November 16th 1996 by President Mary Robinson and Sheikh Hamdan Al Maktoum. It is located next to University College Dublin. The mosque and cultural centre include a main prayer hall, a restaurant, a library, meeting rooms, laundry facilities, ten apartments, administrative offices and recently a shop. A primary school is also located on the premises.

The ICCI was designed by the Irish architect firm, Michael Collins & Associates. The layout is based on a square divided into nine smaller squares, with the mosque placed in the centre. The building is a steel frame structure with brick infill and is detailed with stainless steel.[3]

Organisations and activities

Executive director of the ICCI is Nooh Al Kaddo, an Iraqi native who moved from Liverpool to Dublin in 1997 to run the Islamic centre. The imam of the ICCI is Hussein Halawa, who came to Ireland from Egypt in 1996 and is also chairman of the Irish Council of Imams.

The ICCI hosts the Muslim National School, a state funded primary school, with an Islamic ethos and with over 260 pupils. The religious department is sponsored by the al-Maktoum Foundation.[1]

The centre housed the headquarters of the International Association of Muslim Scholars (later International Union of Muslim Scholars) before it moved to Qatar.

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 The Muslim Community in Ireland Ali Selim (ICCI), The Journal of the National Consultative Committee on Racism and Interculturalism, issue 9: July 2005
  2. ↑ 3,873 Muslims in Ireland according to the 1991 census CSO Ireland
  3. ↑ archnet: information about ICCI construction

External links