Bāb al-Islām Mosque | |
Native Name: | Spanish; Castilian: Mezquita Bab al-Islam |
Native Name Lang: | es |
Map Type: | Peru#South America |
Map Size: | 250px |
Religious Affiliation: | Islam |
Location: | San Pedro de Tacna |
Tradition: | Sunni |
Festivals: | --> |
Country: | Peru |
Organizational Status: | --> |
Type: | Mosque |
Leadership: | Asociación Musulmana Pakistaní |
Year Completed: | 2000 |
Date Destroyed: | --> |
Elevation Ft: | --> |
The Bab al-Islam Mosque (Spanish; Castilian: 1=Mezquita Bab al-Islam;) is located in Tacna, a city in southern Peru. It is the only such Peruvian place of worship that is an example of Islamic architecture in the country, though it is not the only such building. Combined with the adjoining Shah Waliullah School of Sciences, it is the largest place of worship for Muslims in the entirety of the Department of Tacna. Prayers are offered in both Spanish and Arabic.[1]
It was built by Pakistanis who had arrived to Peru as merchants in the 1990s and were importing used cars from Japan and the United States with permission from the erstwhile Peruvian president Alberto Fujimori. The Pakistani community in Tacna grew to 95 people by 1995 and further to 500 people by the beginning of the 21st century. The complex was founded in 2000, and construction was completed by 2008. Imam Mohammad Usman was head of the Bab al-Islam Mosque in 2015.[2]