Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi inaugurated the Islamic Culture Center in the New Administrative Capital early Thursday, on the eve of the first day of the holy month of Ramadan.
The complex has one of the world’s largest mosques, with a capacity of 107,000 worshippers, with minarets of 140 meters in length.
There are additional rooms for various rituals and chambers for teaching Koran to men, women, and children.
The restaurant contains a parking area, as well as a seven-story parking garage with a capacity of 3,000 cars.
Ahead of the inauguration, the President joined laborers and engineers working in the construction of the New Administrative Capital for Suhoor (pre-dawn meal).
In his brief statement, El-Sisi said “it is important to be together on this great occasion”, praising the efforts of workers in the new capital over the past few years.
El-Sisi was accompanied by senior statesmen, including Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly, Minister of Foreign Affairs Sameh Shoukry, Al-Azhar Grand Imam Ahmed El-Tayyeb, and Minister of Religious Endowments Mohamed Mokhtar Gomaa.
After that, the President was briefed on the center built in the Government District and comprising Masjid Misr, the world’s second-largest mosque.
The mosque extends over an area of 19,100 square meters. It has three main entrances surmounted by Islamic domes and a fourth service entrance. It can accommodate 107,000 worshippers, including 12,000 in its 9,600-metre main prayer hall, 40,000 in the upper hall, and 55,000 in the lower hall.
