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Britain First East London Mosque

East London Mosque

A new report 2023 on Muslim civil society in Britain is welcomed by the East London Mosque & London Muslim Center. In this report, which is the first to explore Muslim civil society in Britain, we were delighted to host a focus group. Upcoming prayer time for holy month at Britain First East London Mosque Ramadan Timetable 2023 is Time 2023 will begin at 03:59 AM for SEHRI and end at 07:14 PM for IFTAR.

ELM Location

East London Mosque is located between Whitechapel and Aldgate East in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is one of the largest mosques in Europe when combined with the adjoining London Muslim Centre and Maryam Centre. Loudspeakers were allowed to be used to broadcast the adhan for the first time at the mosque in the UK.

As a member of the Tower Hamlets Inter Faith Forum, TELCO, and an affiliate of the Muslim Council of Britain, the mosque is also a founding member of the Tower Hamlets Inter Faith Forum. There is a very close relationship between the Islamic Forum of Europe (IFE) and the East London Mosque. The IFE was established in 1989 by Muslims involved in the mosque’s operation. Some of the mosque’s practices reflect Hanafi doctrine.

History Fact After World War-2

On land left vacant after World War II bombing, construction of the three-storey East London Mosque began in 1982 and was completed in 1985. John Gill Associates designed the building. Whitechapel Road is the front of the building, while Fieldgate Street is the rear. There are two distinct colours in the brick pattern on the exterior. A golden dome of about 8.5m diameter tops the mosque. There are two smaller copies of the minaret at the main entrance, which rises to about 28.5m above ground level. Besides two large halls and a gallery, the mosque also has classrooms, offices, and a retail area.

Mosque Constructed at London Muslim Centre

Britain first east london mosque construction began in 2002 on the London Muslim Centre, the mosque’s first expansion phase. There is a six-story building adjacent to the mosque with a prominent mosaic pattern at its entrance. Aside from the multipurpose halls, the center also features a seminar suite, a nursery, classrooms, a fitness center, a small Islamic library, a radio station, retail spaces, and offices. A Markland Klaschka Limited company designed it.

As part of phase 2, a nine-storey addition was constructed on the Fieldgate Street side. This street called the Maryam Centre, on the same site originally used for the mosque’s funeral services. Over five floors of facilities, including a prayer hall, a fitness center, and a visitor center. It were opened by the Maryam Center on 4 July 2013.

Mosque in East London’s original location

Jumu’ah prayers were held in various rooms from 1910 to 1940. To establish a permanent place of prayer, three houses were bought in 1940 at 446–448 Commercial Road in the east end of London. In a ceremony attended by Colonel Sir Gordon Neal (representing the Secretary of State for India), the combined houses were inaugurated as the ‘East London Mosque and Islamic Culture Centre’ on 2 August 1941. In the first prayer, Shaikh Hafiz Wahba, the Saudi Arabian Ambassador, led the congregation. 

There were 2,000 East Pakistanis living in Britain in 1951, but 6,000 in 1961, making them one of the largest ethnic groups. In 1971, Bangladesh became part of the world, and the country had a significant increase in immigration from small towns of the Sylhet division. As a result, there were 65,000 Bangladeshi-origin people living in Britain during the 1970s, an increase of 22,000 since the 1960s. In 2021 approximately 1,587,819 Pakistanis were living in Wales and England.

The purpose of building this mosque

Commercial Road properties were bought by the local authority under a compulsory purchase order in 1975 in exchange for a temporary building site at Fieldgate Street Great Synagogue on Whitechapel Road. On the site, the local community raised funds to build a mosque. King Fahd of Saudi Arabia donated £1.1 million of the £2 million fund, and Kuwait and Britain also contributed. Seven years later, the building of the new mosque commenced, with foundations laid in 1982 and construction completed in 1985.

Britain First East London Mosque Trust

The East London Mosque Trust is a registered charity (previously registered as The London Mosque Fund). And a private company (limited by guarantee, no share capital). The mosque is managed by trustees who are elected biennially by its members at the Annual General Meeting. The Director is Dilowar Hussain Khan, The Khatib and Head Imam of the mosque is Abdul Qayum, and the Chairman is Ayub Khan.

East London Mosque Website www.eastlondonmosque.org.uk and Address 46-92 Whitechapel Road, London, United Kingdom

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