Cherkessk/Agency Caucasus – Plans fell through to build a mosque in central Cherkessk, capital of Karachai-Cherkessia, because it was reported that no appropriate place was found to host the mosque.
A statement released from the Religious Authority of Karachai-Cherkessia and Stavropol said that the project of building a mosque in central Cherkessk was put on hold because of the absence of empty space to host it.
When Ramzan Kadyrov, President of Chechnya, made a trip early this year to Cherkessk, he was surprised to hear that there was no mosque in the capital city of Karachai-Cherkessia. As Kadyrov promised to supply the financial support for building a mosque, his Circassian counterpart Mustafa Batdiyev promised to make space available for it too.
Ismail Hadji Berdiyev, top religious authority of Karachai-Cherkessia and Stavropol, said that all empty spaces like parking lots and sports fields were sold to unidentified people. For this reason, said Berdiyev, the officials could not find any real person to talk to, which made it all the more difficult to specify a date when the building of the mosque would start.
The mosque would be built at the cost of 250mn rubles. It would host up to six thousand prayers at one time. The project for this mosque was designed in Turkey.
Cherkessk has five churches and three small mosques. Three of the five churches are Orthodox. Two of the three mosques are rented. RE/ÖZ/FT
