ABU DHABI, 27 Oct, 04 (WAM) - The Al Aqsa Mosque or Al Haram Al Sharifwill have a fifth minaret which is to be built by Jordan's King AbdullahIbn Al Hussain, it was announced here yesterday.
Speaking on the sidelines of a four-day Islamic conference, Dr AhmedHoleil, Minister of Auqaf and Islamic Affairs in Jordan said the ideaof building a fifth minaret was to depict the five pillars of Islam,according to a report in +Khaleej Times.+ The fifth minaret will be built in an Islamic architecture to go in harmonywith the already built four minarets. It will be built at the easternwall.
The four existing minarets, built between 677 and 769 Hijri, are BabAl Magharbeh, Al Selseleh, Al Ghawanmeh and Al Asbat. There are also severaldomes namely Al Selseleh, Al Mi'raj, Mehrab Al Nabi, Yousef, Sulaimanand Al Nahawy.
Al Haram Al Sharif represents the heart of the Palestinian-Israeli conflictbecause of its religious significance for Muslims and of the Jewish claimsof their alleged Haykal (Temple of Solomon).
The congregational mosque was built in the time of Umar Ibn Al Khattabaccommodating more than 5,000 worshippers.
Originally commissioned by Abdal Malik Ibn Marwan, the Umayyad Caliphwho was the patron of the Dome of the Rock, the contemporary congregationalmosque of Al Aqsa is a result of different stages of construction andrenovations.
