Markazi Masjid, Dewsbury

The Markazi Masjid ("Central Mosque"), also known as the Dewsbury Markaz or Dar ul Ulum ("House of Knowledge"),[1] is a mosque in the Savile Town area of Dewsbury, West Yorkshire, England.

Markazi Masjid
Religion
AffiliationSunni Islam
SectTablighi Jamaat
Location
LocationDewsbury, West Yorkshire
Markazi Masjid, Dewsbury is located in West Yorkshire
Markazi Masjid, Dewsbury
Shown within West Yorkshire
Geographic coordinates53°40′52″N 1°37′44″W
Architecture
FounderHafiz Patel
Groundbreaking1978
Completed1982
Capacity4,000

With a maximum capacity of 4,000,[2] it is one of the largest mosques in Europe.[3] It is the European headquarters of the Tablighi Jamaat movement,[4][5][6] and also houses one of the two main Islamic seminaries in the UK.[3][7] The mosque serves as a centre for Tablighi Jamaat's missionary activity throughout Europe.[1]

It was also the location of the Institute of Islamic Education (Arabic: جامعات تعليم الإسلام, romanized: ‘Jāmi’at Ta’līm al-Islām),[8] a private day and boarding faith school for boys aged 13–25[9] However the school formally closed in January 2023.[10]

Construction of the mosque commenced in 1978 and was completed in 1982;[11] the seminary was founded in 1980.[2] The founder of Dewsbury Markaz was Hafiz Patel, who remained its leading figurehead until his death in 2016.[11]

Services
Further information: Tablighi Jamaat § Activities and traditions

The Dewsbury Markaz is aligned with the Tablighi Jamaat movement and bases its services around its six principles. Daily services consist of prayers, talks and public lectures, and the organisation of ten person groups (jamaats) who undertake proselytising trips. As the headquarters of Tablighi Jamaat in Europe, it has frequently been the location of its annual regional gathering (ijtema).[12] The Markaz co-ordinates activities of the Tablighi Jama'at across the UK through liaison with five regional centres in Blackburn, Birmingham, Glasgow, Leicester and London and hundreds of UK mosques.[13]

Controversy

Tablighi Jamaat and the Dewsbury Markaz has been accused of promoting extremist Islamism and having links with Islamic terrorism in Britain; Mohammad Sidique Khan and Shehzad Tanweer, two of the 7 July 2005 London bombers, are reported to have attended prayers at the mosque.[14][15] Both the allegation of extremism and specific claims that Sidique Khan or Tanweer visited the mosque are denied by its leaders.[16][17][18]

In 2006 the Institute of Islamic Education was criticised by Ofsted for an "over-emphasis" on religious study to the neglect of the secular curriculum,[8] leading to poor exam performance.[19][20] The inspection in 2008 reported that school was satisfactory in that area.[21] The Times journalist Andrew Norfolk has argued the school contributes to ethnic segregation in the local area.[14][15] In 2021 the school failed a further Ofsted inspection after a book, named 'Islam on Homosexuality' was found in the school library. In the book there are passages which call for execution of homosexuals.[22]

See also

References
  1. Rex, John (2002). "Islam in the United Kingdom". In Hunter, Shireen (ed.). Islam, Europe's second religion: the new social, cultural, and political landscape. Greenwood Publishing Group. pp. 51–76. ISBN 0-275-97608-4.
  2. "Markazi Masjid". Muslims in Britain. 25 April 2015. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
  3. "Markazi Masjid". Archived from the original on 8 February 2011. Retrieved 15 October 2010.
  4. Michael Emerson Ethno-religious Conflict in Europe 2009 p.123 "3.1 Non-political religious groups Tablighi Jamaat Britain is the current locus of Tablighi Jamaat in the West, with the Dewsbury Central Mosque in West Yorkshire serving as its European headquarters, although the group is highly decentralised."
  5. Wainright, Martin (29 May 2008). "The name's Dewsbury". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 October 2010.
  6. Fred Burton and Scott Stewart (23 January 2008). "Tablighi Jamaat: An Indirect Line to Terrorism". StartforGI. Stratfor Global Intelligence. Archived from the original on 5 September 2014. Retrieved 9 August 2014.
  7. Werbner, Pnina (February 1996). "The Making of Muslim Dissent: Hybridized Discourses, Lay Preachers, and Radical Rhetoric among British Pakistanis". American Ethnologist. 23 (1): 102–122. doi:10.1525/ae.1996.23.1.02a00060. JSTOR 646256.
  8. Institute Of Islamic Education (Jaamia Talimul Islam) (PDF). Ofsted. 17 October 2006. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 June 2009. Retrieved 15 October 2010.
  9. "Institute of Islamic Education". Ofsted. Retrieved 15 October 2010.
  10. "Institute of Islamic Education". get-information-schools.service.gov.uk.
  11. Timol, Riyaz. "Obituary: Hafiz Patel (1926-2016)".
  12. Robinson, Andrew (20 October 2018). "Muslims travelled from across Britain to Dewsbury to hear this message". ExaminerLive. Retrieved 10 June 2020.
  13. Timol, Riyaz (14 October 2019). "first_pagesettings Open AccessArticle Structures of Organisation and Loci of Authority in a Glocal Islamic Movement: The Tablighi Jama'at in Britain". Religions. 10 (10). doi:10.3390/rel10100573.
  14. Norfolk, Andrew (21 October 2006). "How bombers' town is turning into an enclave for Muslims". The Times. Retrieved 15 October 2010.
  15. Norfolk, Andrew (10 September 2007). "Muslim group behind 'mega-mosque' seeks to convert all Britain". The Times. Retrieved 15 October 2010.
  16. "Mosque leaders should speak out, says Tory..." The Press. Archived from the original on 22 April 2013. Retrieved 15 October 2010.
  17. Hookham, Mark (11 September 2008). "Trial puts Dewsbury Islamic group in spotlight". Yorkshire Evening Post. Retrieved 15 October 2010.
  18. Kristianasen, Wendy (November 2006). "Saturday afternoon in Dewsbury". Le Monde diplomatique - English edition. Retrieved 15 October 2010.
  19. "Education | League Tables | Institute of Islamic Education". BBC News. BBC. 19 October 2005.
  20. "Education | League Tables | Secondary schools in Kirklees". BBC News. BBC. 10 January 2008. Retrieved 15 October 2010.
  21. Institute Of Islamic Education (PDF). Ofsted. 12 June 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 June 2009. Retrieved 15 October 2010.
  22. Lavigueur, Nick (21 July 2021). "Ofsted find book in Dewsbury school calling for gay people to be killed". YorkshireLive.
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