The day of March 24, 2017, is etched into Egyptian architectural history with the inauguration of Al-Sahaba Mosque in the Red Sea resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh. The mosque, whose name refers to the companions of the Prophet Muhammad, is one of the most important Islamic structures built in the country in the 21st century.
Al-Sahaba Mosque was built combining a pattern of different styles — Fatimid, Mamluk, Ottoman and canonical — to send a message that the Sinai Peninsula, which was once the cradle of religions, is still a place of tolerance and love.
"The aim of mixing different cultures and styles in one structure is to create a kind of interreligious harmony," architect Fouad Tawfik, who designed the mosque, told Al-Monitor.
The first stage in the construction of the mosque was based on donations collected by a charity nongovernmental organization in Sharm el-Sheikh called Al-Moustafa. The foundation stone was laid in October 2010, but work stopped during the January 25 Revolution. The work resumed in April 2011 and was suspended in 2015 due to a lack of donations. Chance played a role in expediting the completion of this magnificent structure when President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi was in Sharm el-Sheikh to preside over the Egypt Economic Development Conference that was attended by over 2,000 delegates from 112 different countries.
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