Algerian Officials Inaugurate the Largest Mosque in Africa

After seven years of construction, Algeria has inaugurated the largest mosque in Africa. The Great Mosque of Algiers (or the Djamaa El-Djazair) is also the third-largest in the world, eclipsed only by the Grand Mosque of Mecca and the Prophet’s Mosque in Medina. He planned to name the site the “Abdelaziz Bouteflika Mosque,” mirroring the Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca, Morocco, which is named after Hassan II. His endeavor, however, was largely criticized as a “vanity project,” according to Al Jazeera. Experts worried the mosque was built on a site prone to earthquakes, though Algerian officials have since denied those claims.