Parliament calls for restoration of mosques, churches

CAIRO- 21 April 2017: Parliament members urge authorities to restore ancient churches and mosques to promote religious tourism in Egypt, Thursday.

During a Thursday session, the Religious Affairs Committee at the Parliament criticized “severe negligence” at archaeological and religious sites in Egypt, announcing inspection visits to stand on the situation during the coming days.

The committee called on concerned bodies to resume collecting Islamic manuscripts from mosques across the country. It further recommended the compiled scripts to be placed in “glass boxes” at Cairo’s Central library of Sayyeda Zeinab Mosque, after its restoration.

The Religious Affairs Committee organized a trip to El-Doaa mosque located in El-Darb El-Ahmar district in Cairo, in which the Shrine of Benjamin, brother of Prophet Joseph lays.

The parliament has raised recommendations over the mosque’s poor condition after renovation procedures were halted following dispute between both Ministries of Endowment and Antiquities.

“Both ministries ignored the suggestions of collecting donations to restore the mosque since its closure in 2009,” said the head of the Committee for Religious Affairs and Endowments Osama el-Abd. He added that negligence at El-Doaa Mosque resulted in having some expensive artifacts stolen.

Abd told added that paying attention to the ancient mosques is “a must as they represent priceless values to the Egyptians,” in addition to their vital role in promoting tourism.

The committee has requested considering Sayyeda Zeinab mosque a monument, said El-Abd.

Meanwhile, MP Shoukry El-Gendy argued that the Ministry of Endowments exerts great efforts yet the number of mosques which are in need of renovation is so high.
“We all need to cooperate to help the minister in putting an end to this negligence,” El Gendy added.