Sunday, Apr 14, 2013
Dubai
The famous square minaret of Al Omari Mosque in the old town of Daraa, 100 KM to the south of the Syrian capital, Damscus, was demolished in what the opposition calledthe most barbaric attack on a religious and historical monument, built by the second caliph of Islam, Oman bin Al Khattab (576-644).
The minaret, according to two video clips posted on YouTube, was bombarded by four tanks shells from a close distance in the morning time of April 13 resulting in its collapse in a few minutes.
The amateur photographer of one of the footage started commenting on the video by saying: Bashar’s forces are shelling Al Omari Mosque. They are trying to pour their grudge against the mosque which saw the first demonstration against Bashar Al Assad regime that marks the start of the 25 month old bloody revolution.
The commentator shouted after few minute “Oh God, the mosque which was built by the Second Caliph Omar is demolished by Bashar..” .
Al Omari mosque is one of the first mosques in the Levant region and one of five mosques holding the same name in the region. Others include the nearby Bosra town in Aleppo, 400 km to the north, Gaza 250 km to the south west and and Ashmon in Egypt.
The mosque, which was used to perform the five daily prayers until the bombardment of the minaret two days ago, also serves as a symbol of gratitude to the man who spreadthe message of Islam.
Under Omar, the Islamic state expanded at an unprecedented pace. The Sassanid Empire in Persia and more than two thirds of the Eastern Roman Empire embraced Islam.
The Muslim army under his leadership conquered Sassanid Persian Empire in less than two years.
It was Omar, according to Jewish tradition, who removed a ban on Jews in Jerusalem, allowing them to worship freely in the holy city.
Engineer Dr. Jalal Khanji, member of the Syrian National Coalition, said the attack on Al Omari Mosque is not strage for a regime with a secular agenda that hates any memory from the old era. In an interview over the phone, he told Gulf News over than 1000 mosques all over the country had been attacked by the regime in the past two years with a special focus on minarets. “The attack on al Omari Mosque is the most barabric work due to the historical value of the building,” he said.
Omar ordered the building of the Daraa Omari Mosque on his visit to Syria in 636 following its liberation form Roman rule. The second caliph ruled from August 634 till his assassination by a Persian craftsman and a prisoner of war who mocked his conversion to Islam, in November 644. During his 10 year tenure, Omar worked to spread the message of Islam in Iraq, Iran, the Levant, Egypt and North Africa.
The mosque was built on a small scale but expanded through the history and took its final shape more than 1000 years ago during the Umayyad State which followed the four Caliphs.
There was no comment from the Syrian government by the time of going to print.
By Duraid Al Baik ?UAE Editor
Gulf News 2013. All rights reserved.
