New Mosque Opens in Belgian Town, Offering Expanded Space for Muslim Community

Named Assalam, the mosque of peace, this new place of worship in Court-Saint-Étienne has been open since Sunday. It consists of a large prayer hall for men, ablution rooms, multipurpose and learning rooms, and a library, reports RTBF.

Unlike the one on Avenue Reine Astrid, the new mosque has a large space reserved for women. "We didn’t have a place to pray, to gather, to meet and exchange," explains Imane. "We are happy and proud to finally enter a place where we can live our religion, see each other and meet people. It warms my heart. We were waiting for this moment with great impatience and now this day has arrived."

The path to this inauguration was long and fraught with obstacles. But for Abdel Jellouli, who has been coordinating the project for many years, all of this is now in the past. "It’s true that it was hard, but all projects are difficult. Now we’re here and everyone is happy."

The construction of the mosque was financed by donations. "And not a single penny comes from abroad," Abdel Jellouli is quick to point out. A contractor was tasked with completing the closed structural work, and volunteers did the rest. "It took a lot of work, a lot of perseverance and a lot of imagination," salutes Michael Goblet d’Alviella, the mayor of Court-Saint-Étienne. Mission accomplished for the Muslim community of Court-Saint-Étienne, which has long wanted "to have an open place of worship where it can calmly and serenely live its spirituality".