BEIRUT: Muslim religious leaders, politicians and a crowd of thousands gathered in central Beirut on Friday for the inauguration of Lebanon s largest mosque, a project launched by assassinated ex-premier Rafiq Hariri.
Hariri s son and political heir Saad Hariri held back tears as he read a prayer at his father s grave located on site before unveiling a plaque that paid tribute to the former prime minister killed in a massive 2005 car-bombing.
The billionaire former premier placed the cornerstone for the 10,000-square-meter (108,000-square-foot) Mohamed Al-Amin mosque in 2002 but never saw it completed.
Egypt s Mufti Ali Gomaa delivered a sermon to the thousands who packed the mosque including Prime Minister Fouad Siniora and the mufti of Jerusalem, Sheikh Mohamed Hussein.
Ministers from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Oman, Kuwait, Djibouti and the Palestinian territories also attended.
Church bells tolled as the ceremony got underway.
The mosque s architect Azmi Fakhuri said the blue-domed structure with four towering minarets had an Ottoman style, copying the Blue Mosque in Istanbul, but a Lebanese identity.
Rafiq Hariri had said in 2002 that he designated $24 million to the project.
Luxurious oriental carpets cover the mosque s floor with crystal chandeliers hanging overhead, while the interior walls are decorated with Quranic verses.
The Mohamed Al-Amin mosque is located in downtown Beirut, which is already home to six other mosques and 10 churches. -AFP
