London's Markaz: WILL THE QUEEN WEAR A HIJAB?

The Markaz is planned as the largest Islamic center in Europe with over 180,000 square meters of prime London real estate, funded by Saudi Arabia.


By Si Frumkin:

When the Olympic games open in London in 2012, 80,000 spectators will crowd in the new Olympic stadium. Few of them will know - or care - that the land on which the stadium was constructed had to be cleared of existing structures or that one of them was the biggest evangelical church in Europe, Kingsway Evangelical Christian Centre, with 12,000 worshippers on Sundays.

It is somewhat ironic that on that day the swarms of helicopters will transmit a picture of another religious structure near the stadium. It hasn’t been built yet, but it will be completed in time for the Olympics and will probably become a London landmark that will be recognized worldwide – much larger than the House of Parliament, Buckingham Palace, St. Paul’s Cathedral and the Westminster Abbey put together.

It is the Markaz – a gigantic 10-acre, three-story Islamic center with a mega-mosque that could accommodate as many as 70,000 visitors with schools, libraries, gyms and living quarters. The mosque will have a capacity that is only 10,000 less than the Olympic stadium; it will have futuristic wind turbine minarets instead of the traditional domes, an enormous latticed translucent roof and will have the capability to be extended, through inflatable structures, to provide additional space.

The London Times reports that the project’s cost will be around $100 million but British Muslim sources estimate it to be in excess of $500 million. What everyone seems to agree on, however, is that most of the money will come from Saudi Arabia.

By comparison, America’s largest mega-church, the Lakewood Church in Houston, seats only 25,000. Britain’s largest cathedral, in Liverpool, can accommodate only 3000. When completed, the 16-acre Merkaz complex will become the largest place of worship in Europe.

The first mosque in Britain was opened over 80 years ago. There are more than 1000 mosques in London now, more than in any European city and many converted from Anglican churches. The largest one can hold 5000 worshippers, more than any other in Western Europe. It was erected by the Ahmadi Muslims who also constructed the first London mosque in 1924. The Ahmadi mosques were funded entirely by donations from their congregations who lived harmoniously in Britain for many decades and who abhor extremism. Significantly, the Ahmadis are considered to be heretics by the rest of the Islamic world.

The new mega-mosque will be built by the Tablighi Jamaat – (Proselytizing Group) - movement that describes itself as a peaceful, non-political missionary movement dedicated to spreading Islam. There are indications, however, that this movement is not quite as peaceful as it would like to appear – two of the 7/7 London bombers were regular visitors at the group’s headquarters in Yorkshire and U.S. anti-terror officials have been quoted as saying that the group had been infiltrated by extremists, including the “American Taliban” John Walker Lindh.

Steve Denny, a former FBI agent who followed al-Qaida’s activities told NBC that, “If al-Qaida needed a fresh set of bodies in order to pull an operation, one of the places they would go would be Tablighi Jamaat”. According to the French Le Monde newspaper, French intelligence officers have described it as “antechamber – entrance – to fundamentalism”.

The size and location of the mega-mosque complex are a cause of concern to many Britons, especially since permission to build the facility will not be granted by the elected local Newham city council but rather by an appointed committee of the London Thames Gateway Development Corporation whose decisions cannot be appealed or challenged. London’s controversial leftist mayor, “Red” Ken Livingstone, who has been outspokenly anti-Israel, anti-US and anti-Jewish, has recently signaled through his London Development Commission that it would be a good thing for London to have a major Muslim landmark.

Newham councilor Alan Craig does not object to mosques or any other places of worship, but has serious concerns: “I am worried about community and security impact of the mosque. Permission has not yet been given but Muslims are moving into this area in preparation. The area where the Tablighi Jamaat is now based has a more than 90% Muslim population. This part of London was always very diverse and this is the way it should be kept. We can’t have one group taking over.”

Muslims are the largest minority faith community in Britain – about 2 million or 3%. In London the Muslims reach 9% - about 700,000. The latest polls indicate that 40-60% of British Muslims believe that strict fundamental Islamic Sharia laws should govern Britain. British intelligence has stated that about 1600 suicide bombers are primed and ready to go.

So, it is likely that in 2012 London Olympics, the world’s sports fans will be will be sitting in front of their TVs and wondering where the heck London went. By then, however, a mega-mosque may more accurately represent what the city of Big Ben and Tower of London had become.

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