As-Sunnah mosque Assen finds shelter after all, praying outside is not necessary

The old mosque building is being demolished to make way for a new place of worship. The mosque’s board was therefore looking for a temporary building. That search was very difficult. There were hardly any suitable buildings in Assen and the rent for suitable spaces was usually too high.

There seemed to be no other option than to place an emergency building on the site of the current mosque on Mr. Green van Prinstererlaan. Not an ideal solution, especially during the busy Friday prayers, there is not enough room in that building for all believers. Some would then have to pray outside.

This also happened during the corona pandemic. In the outdated mosque building from the 1960s, it was not always possible to keep one and a half meters away during the prayer service. Women were therefore already asked not to come to the service on Fridays. Friday prayers are obligatory for men, while women can decide for themselves whether to attend the service.

Mosque chairman Mohamed El Mourabit says that the board had been eyeing the building on the Lauwers for some time. Previous negotiations about the price broke down, but according to El Mourabit, the property owner was now willing to give some discount on the rent.

At the end of March, the mosque will move to the temporary building on the Lauwers. As a result, according to the mosque board, the contractor can start demolishing earlier. The board first wanted to wait for Ramadan, because many people go to the mosque in that holy month for Muslims. Demolition can now start during Ramadan in April. El Mourabit: “I am very happy that we have found something. As soon as our old building is empty, they can start demolishing it”,

Construction of the new mosque is scheduled for mid-May. The prayer house will have two floors with separate prayer rooms for men and women. The mosque will also have a modern washroom and a meeting room. Outside comes a decorative minaret.