With Qatari funding, the Imam Abu Hanifa al-Numan Mosque, the largest mosque in Central Asia, was inaugurated in the Tajik capital Dushanbe, on the sidelines of the visit of the Emir of the State of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani to Tajikistan as part of a tour that also included Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan.

The mosque, which lasted nearly 14 years and cost $100 million, consists of 4 minarets with a height of 74 meters, two small minarets with a height of 21 meters, a large dome with a height of 43 meters, and 17 small domes with a height of 35 meters.

The exterior area of the building is more than 62,133 square meters, and the mosque can serve 43,<> worshippers at the same time, of which <>,<> are inside the mosque, and the rest are around it.

Chairman of the Committee on Religious Affairs and Organization of Rituals, Celebrations and Traditions of Tajikistan, Suleiman Dawlatzadeh, said that the opening of the Imam Abu Hanifa al-Numan Mosque, the largest mosque in Central Asia in the capital Dushanbe funded by the State of Qatar, confirms the great role played by Qatar in the Islamic world, and its great position as a country that has provided and continues to provide a lot of service to humanity in the world.

#قنا_فيديو |
Imam Abu Hanifa Al-Numan bin Thabit Mosque. An Islamic edifice with Qatari support illuminates #آسيا_الوسطى from the heart of the capital of #Tajikistan #Qena #قطر pic.twitter.com/VBbSfrnWZw

— Qatar News Agency (@QatarNewsAgency) June 8, 2023

High status

Dawlatzadeh explained that the State of Qatar, thanks to its charitable initiatives and efforts, has been able to take a high position in the Islamic world in recent decades, and this indicates the success of its foreign policy, expressing his pride in the State of Qatar's participation in the development of his country through several projects, the latest of which is the Imam Abu Hanifa Al-Numan Mosque in Dushanbe, which stands as an edifice and witness to the increasing achievements of Qatar.

He stressed that the opening of the mosque has a positive impact on the spirit of friendship between the two countries and peoples, as this mosque will serve Muslims in Tajikistan for many centuries in the future, and will continue to be an influential factor in strengthening friendship and cooperation between the two countries, and at the same time driving the development of bilateral relations between the two countries to wider horizons.

The Chairman of the Religious Affairs Committee pointed out that the opening of the Imam Abu Hanifa al-Numan Mosque, with the participation of the Emir of Qatar and the President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon, is a good sign to further strengthen relations between the two countries and the signing of several new cooperation agreements in various fields between the two countries.

Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon inaugurate the mosque (Qatari press)

Promoting tolerance

He pointed out that the State of Qatar is distinguished, among the countries of the Islamic world, by great experience in presenting Islamic values, and it would be useful to study Qatar's experience in the field of interfaith dialogue, promoting religious tolerance and preventing manifestations of religious extremism and terrorism, and from this point of view, increasing cooperation between the State of Qatar and Central Asian countries will be in the interest of the region.

For his part, the Ambassador of the Republic of Tajikistan to the State of Qatar, Khosrow Sahibzadeh, said that the Abu Hanifa Al-Numan Mosque in the Tajik capital Dushanbe is a unique project in the Central Asian region, pointing out that this mosque came as a gift from the State of Qatar to the Tajik people.

Zadeh added that the visit of the Emir of the State of Qatar to Tajikistan aimed to review bilateral relations in all areas of common interest.