The Islamic Centre Hamburg (german: Islamisches Zentrum Hamburg) ( fa, مرکز اسلامی هامبورگ) is one of the oldest

mosque A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers ( sujud) are performed, ...

s in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

and

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

and is abbreviated IZH. Established in

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

, in northern Germany, in the late 1950s by a group of Iranian emigrants and business people. It is also known as the ''Blaue Moschee'' (blue mosque). Iranian theologians and politicians (including Ayatollah Beheshti, Ayatollah Mohammad Mojtahed Shabestari or Mohammad Khatami) have spent time (often years) at the IZH.

History

During a meeting at Atlantic Hotel (Hamburg) in 1953, a group of Iranian residents of Germany discussed the need to establish their own religious center. A letter was sent to the late Grand Ayatollah Seyyed Husayn Borujerdi asking him for help; Grand Ayatollah agreed with the plan and donated 100,000 Rials to the center. The construction began in 1960 and by 1965 it was completed. In the same year Ayatollah Mohammad Beheshti was appointed to lead the center. During the 1970s the centre played a significant role in bringing about the political rising of Iranian students in the West against the

Shah Shah (; fa, شاه, , ) is a royal title that was historically used by the leading figures of Iranian monarchies.Yarshater, EhsaPersia or Iran, Persian or Farsi, ''Iranian Studies'', vol. XXII no. 1 (1989) It was also used by a variety of ...

and ultimately contributed to the

Iranian Revolution The Iranian Revolution ( fa, انقلاب ایران, Enqelâb-e Irân, ), also known as the Islamic Revolution ( fa, انقلاب اسلامی, Enqelâb-e Eslâmī), was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dyna ...

. Since 1993, the (HV) monitors IZH as an outpost of the

Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran The Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran ( fa, نظام جمهوری اسلامی ایران, Neẓām-e jomhūrī-e eslāmi-e Irān, known simply as ''Neẓām'' ( fa, نظام, lit=the system) among its supporters) is the ruling state a ...

due to ideological, organisational and personal ties to the regime. The HV considers IZH to work against the democratic societal order. The IZH has repeatedly protested the monitoring and unsuccessfully to avoid it. In 2016, IZH members took part in an anti-Israel protest in Berlin where Israel was denounced as an "enemy of humanity" and "terrorist", which became part of the long-standing public debate on Islamic community organisations in Germany.

Directors

* Hojjatulislam Mohagheghi (1955–1965) * Hojjatulislam

Mohammad Beheshti Mohammad Hosseini Beheshti ( fa, سیّد محمد حسینی بهشتی; 24 October 1928 – 28 June 1981) was an Iranian jurist, philosopher, cleric and politician who was known as the second person in the political hierarchy of Iran after t ...

(1965–1970) * Hojjatulislam Mohammad Mojtahed Shabestari (1970–1978) * Hojjatulislam Mohammad Khatami (1978–1980) * Hojjatulislam Mohammad Reza Moghaddam (1980–1992) * Hojjatulislam Mohammad Bagher Ansari (1992–1998) * Hojjatulislam

Reza Hosseini Nassab Seyed Reza Hosseini Nassab (Persian: سيد رضا حسيني نسب) (born 1960) is an Iranian Twelver Shi'a Marja, currently residing in Canada. He was the President and Imam of the Islamic Centre in Hamburg, Germany, and since 2003 he has ser ...

(1999–2003) * Hojjatulislam Seyyed Abbas Hosseini Ghaemmaghami (2004–2009) * Hojjatulislam

Reza Ramezani Gilani Reza Ramezani ( fa, رضا رمضانی گیلانی) (* 1963 in Rasht, Northern Iran) is a Twelver Shia Muslim cleric with the religious Rank Ayatollah. He has been a member of the Expert Council (Assembly of Experts) in the Islamic Republic of ...

(2009–2018) *Hojjatulislam

Mohammad Hadi Mofatteh Mohammad Hadi Mofatteh ( fa, محمدهادى مفتح) (born 1966 in Qom, Iran) he is a Twelver, Twelver Shia Muslim cleric. with the religious rank Hujjat al-Islam. Since September 2018, he has been the head and director of the Islamic Centre Ham ...

(August 2018–Present)

References

External links

Official website (in German)

Official website (in English)

A brief history
Hamburg Islamic Center. {{Authority control Iranian organizations based in Germany 1965 establishments in West Germany Buildings and structures in Hamburg-Nord Mosques completed in 1965 Mosques in Hamburg Mosque buildings with domes Shia mosques Shia Islam in Germany

History

Directors

See also

References

External links