Relentless efforts exerted to remove terrorism traces, restore the elegance of the Ummayad Mosque in Aleppo

Aleppo, (ST)-After the Syrian Arab Army liberated the city of Aleppo from terrorism in a major military operation three years ago, a reconstruction committee was established for rehabilitating and renovating the Ummayad Mosque of the city which was the target of terrorist attacks that caused huge damage to its famous minaret, stone facades, wooden roofs and most of its assets.

Great efforts have been exerted by maintenance workshops to remove the rubbles and fix the damage in the Mosque.

A team of engineers, sculptors and craftsmen have worked relentlessly to restore the elegance of the Mosque which constitutes one of the unique monuments that represent the ancient architectural style in Aleppo city. 

  Dr. Sakhir Olabi, Director of the project for Restoring the Ummayad Mosque told SANA reporter that a preliminary plan was drawn up to renovate the mosque, including  the stone facades, pointing out that the diversity of agriculture in the mosque goes back to ancient eras and successive civilizations.

According to Olabi, restoration works have been finished in the roofs, internal facades, the electricity network and the decorations and Arabesque designs.

He said that the mosque’s minaret was exposed to a systematic destruction because it was blown up by the terrorists from inside. Now, the solid base of the minaret is being built by the use of huge stones, (each weighs 500 kg) so that they can carry the tower of the 45 meter high minaret.

The Minaret was built in 1093 and it has remained steadfast despite of the many earthquakes that hit the city, till it was destroyed by Takfiri terrorists.

 The mosque’s courtyard includes two sundials that help specify prayer time. These two sundials were damaged in terror attacks and they are now being rehabilitated.

The Ummayad Mosque is the largest and one of the oldest mosques in the city of Aleppo. It was built in the beginning of the 8th century AD. However, the current building dates back to the 11th through 14th centuries.

Hamda Mustafa