Egyptian architectural design to rebuild Mosul’s Al-Nouri Mosque wins UNESCO competition

CAIRO – 16 April 2021: The “Courtyards Dialogue” design submitted by eight Egyptian architects has won the UNESCO competition to rebuild the historic Al-Nouri mosque complex mostly destroyed by the ISIS terrorist group in Iraqi Mosul.

The Egyptian design was selected by an international jury from among 123 entries in the global competition as part of the UNESCO’s project to rehabilitate the ancient city of Mosul, the UN wrote on its website.

The winners of the competition are Salah El Din Hareedy, Khaled El-Deeb, Sherif Ebrahim, Tarek Ali Mohamed, Noha Ryan, Hager Abdel Ghani, Mahmoud Saad Gamal and Yousra El-Baha, the UN said.

“They scooped the award for their imaginative reconstruction of Al-Nouri’s prayer hall and complex – and for the way it blends into its surrounding through open public spaces,” the UN said.

The design will maintain the look of the hall as in the past before it was destroyed in 2017 by the terrorist militia and will provide more space for women and visitors and better natural lighting.

UNESCO says the design also includes enclosed gardens inspired by the historic houses and gardens that were located around the prayer hall in the past.

🔴 Great news!

The beloved Al-Nouri Mosque Complex will begin rebuilding in late 2021.@UNESCO's design competition winners, a team from 🇪🇬, aims to not only rebuild the archeological landmark, but also #ReviveTheSpiritOfMosul.

ℹ️ https://t.co/HhaA3nPUJ1 pic.twitter.com/2apmyRT8Vm

— UNESCO 🏛️ #Education #Sciences #Culture 🇺🇳😷 (@UNESCO) April 15, 2021

The UNESCO competition was launched in November last year in coordination with the Iraqi Ministry of Culture and the Iraqi Sunni Endowment.

Winners at the competition, the Egyptian team, has been awarded the contract for the complex as well as $50,000 prize.