Nov. 9, 2007, 12:04AM Epic battle rages over mega-mosque Muslim group draws ire from London Christians By JANE PERLEZ New York Times TOOLS LONDON - Disputes over mosques have broken out across Europe. Residents from Belgium to France to Germany have expressed unease at minarets competing with the spires and stones of centuries-old cathedrals. But the fight raging over an abandoned lot in London's East End is of an altogether grander scale. A large and secretive Islamic sect proposed building what would have been the largest mosque in Europe, smack at the gateway to the 2012 Olympic Games, and within sight of London's financial district. That plan was sent back to the drawing board to be scaled down. But not before raising a furor of equal size and discomforting questions about the right of Britain's Muslims to take up a public space commensurate with their growing numbers. In Newham, the borough where the mosque would stand, Alan Craig, the leader of the Christian Peoples Alliance Party in the East End, started a one-man campaign against the mosque a year ago that has mushroomed and gained national prominence. He began by emphasizing the size of the mosque. But now he focuses on its sponsor, Tablighi Jamaat, a worldwide evangelical Islamic group based in Pakistan with millions of followers that professes to encourage Muslims to be more loyal to their faith. American and European law enforcement officials say Tablighi Jamaat's simple message masks a fertile recruiting ground for terrorists. The driving force behind the plan to build a grander mosque has been Abdul Khaliq Mian, 55, a British businessman born in Pakistan and a longtime follower of Tablighi Jamaat. In an interview, Mian explained how in 1996 he helped raise 1.6 million pounds from the Tablighi community to buy a lot that was once the site of a sulfuric acid plant. Mian said in the late 1990s, officials on the Newham Borough Council, which includes Muslims, encouraged Tablighi Jamaat to build an especially grand mosque befitting the scale of the land. An up-and-coming architect, Ali Mangara, 40, a Muslim born in South Africa, produced a design that envisioned wind turbines instead of minarets, and generous use of gardens, courtyards and restaurants. In all, with the use of awnings as cover, about 70,000 worshippers would be accommodated, Mangara said. The size of the congregation and avant-garde nature of Mangara's plans fueled Craig's opposition. Several months ago, Mangara's plan, which had created all the furor, was dropped, and Tablighi Jamaat pushed Mian aside, though he remains a fervent follower. In Mangara's place, an establishment London architectural firm, Allies & Morrison, known for projects like refurbishing Royal Festival Hall, has been hired to build a smaller version, which would hold about 12,000. A developer, Sohail Sarbuland, a Muslim but not a member of Tablighi Jamaat, has pledged the money for the building permits. Mangara and others say any breaking of ground will be delayed until after the 2012 Olympics. <http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/world/5287354.html> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] -------------------------- Want to discuss this topic? Head on over to our discussion list, [EMAIL PROTECTED] -------------------------- Brooks Isoldi, editor [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.intellnet.org Post message: [email protected] Subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] *** FAIR USE NOTICE. This message contains copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. OSINT, as a part of The Intelligence Network, is making it available without profit to OSINT YahooGroups members who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information in their efforts to advance the understanding of intelligence and law enforcement organizations, their activities, methods, techniques, human rights, civil liberties, social justice and other intelligence related issues, for non-profit research and educational purposes only. We believe that this constitutes a 'fair use' of the copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law. If you wish to use this copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use,' you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/osint/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/osint/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
