Ar-Rahman Mosque (Pyongyang) Explained

Building Name:Ar-Rahman Mosque
Location:Iranian embassy, Pyongyang, North Korea
Leadership:Iranian Government
Year Completed:January 2013[1]

The Ar-Rahman Mosque is a mosque in Pyongyang, North Korea on the grounds of the Iranian embassy, and is considered the country's first and only mosque. Embassy staff from other Islamic countries in North Korea including Sunni from Indonesia have been reported to visit the mosque and pray at it, and the mosque hosts Friday prayers which have been reported to be attended by Muslim embassy staff from various countries regardless of sect.[2]

Though other Islamic-majority nations, including Egypt, Palestine and Syria, maintain embassies in North Korea, none of these embassies are known to have mosques on their premises. This lack of mosques in North Korea is attributed to the state's religious policies, and it distinguishes North Korea as one of the only countries with a Shia mosque and no Sunni mosques, along with Armenia, which also has only one mosque; the Blue Mosque in Yerevan.[3]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Iran Build's Pyongyang's First Mosque | NK News. January 22, 2013. NK News.
  2. Web site: The first and the only mosque in North they say its for the staff but there are some rumors that some people goKorea. Muslimpress. 2020-04-14. 2020-04-30. https://web.archive.org/web/20200430091430/http://www.muslimpress.com/Section-world-news-16/107854-the-first-and-the-only-mosque-in-north-korea. dead.
  3. Web site: Google Earth and the DPRK: Pyongyang Mosque, Kobangsan, and new hospital. North Korean Economy Watch.