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| Dar Al-Hijrah Islamic Center | |
|---|---|
| Religion | |
| Affiliation | Islam |
| Ecclesiastical or organizational status | Mosque |
| Location | |
| Location | United States |
| Architecture | |
| Type | Mosque |
| Style | Islamic |
| Completed | 1991 |
| Specifications | |
| Capacity | 5,000 (inside) |
| Minaret(s) | 1 |
| Website | |
| www.daralhijrah.net | |
The Dar al-Hijrah Islamic Center (Template:Lang-ar, Template:Lang-en) is a masjid and Islamic Center located in Falls Church, Virginia.
Founded in 1982, it is one of the first masjids to be established in the multi-cultural Northern Virginia area, and has since become one of the largest and most influential mosques in the United States. Weekly Friday prayer attendance at Dar al Hijrah exceeds 3,000 people, and the center is known for its community service and outreach in Fairfax County and the Washington, DC area.
Background
The mosque is situated at the corner of Leesburg Pike (Route 7) and Row Street, around which there are a number of apartment units and single family homes in which numerous Muslim families live within close proximity to the mosque which is near Washington, DC. Numerous halal restaurants, grocery stores, and other Muslim businesses are also located close to the center
The mosque was established in the 1983 in a house that is still on the Center's campus, and currently serves as a Food Bank. The current facility was finished in 1991.
Major Nidal Malik Hasan, currently the sole suspect in the November 5, 2009, Fort Hood shootings, attended the Dar al-Hijrah mosque in 2001, at the same time as Nawaf al-Hazmi and Hani Hanjour, two of the September 11 hijackers.
Activities
Activities at Dar Al Hijrah besides daily prayers include youth recreation and outdoor activities, such as camping and field trips, lectures, women's classes, community outreach, financial assistance, health fairs, and conferences. During the Islamic month of Ramadan, Dar Al Hijrah serves over 800 free meals every night to everyone who wants to come eat, whether Muslim or non-Muslim. Also during Ramadan, Dar Al Hijrah sponsors several interfaith and civic iftar dinners with several different faith groups throughout the month in its mission to promote mutual understanding. Tens of thousands of dollars in zakat is also distributed by the center every Ramadan.
Dar Al Hijrah has a social services department that provides food, clothing and other household items weekly to needy families of all faiths in the local community. The center also operates a Youth Center as well as an Islamic School called the Washington Islamic Academy in Northern Virginia. Dar Al-Hijrah also co-sponsors an annual civic picnic, along with other Northern Virginia organizations in which candidates for local office meet Muslim voters
Dar Al Hijrah is open for group tours.
Outreach
Dar Al Hijrah is active in community outreach and promoting mutual understanding in Northern Virginia. As part of its outreach, Dar Al Hijrah participates in several community food drives, organizing back to school supply drives for needy children, is actively engaged in several interfaith projects in Fairfax County, and participates in civil rights work and community clean up drives.
Leadership
Dar Al Hijrah has a committee of seven members (3 of 7 members are elected every two years while the other 4 are appointed by MAS/Board). The current Imam is Shaker Elsayyed.
Its leaders have strongly criticized U.S. law enforcement actions against Muslims, and U.S. policies in the Middle East.
A notable former Imam is Anwar al-Awlaki, now wanted in Yemen on suspicion of possible al-Qaeda links, who was employed at the mosque between January 2001 and April 2002.
See also
Imam Johari Abdul-Malik, Director of Outreach at the Dar Al Hijrah Islamic Center
Notes
- The Congregation: About Dar Al-Hijrah Islamic Center (pbs.org) at www.pbs.org
- Facing New Realities as Islamic Americans (washingtonpost.com) at www.washingtonpost.com
- Va. Mosque Reaches Out, Joining Immigrant Fabric (washingtonpost.com) at www.washingtonpost.com
- Fort Hood shooting: Texas army killer linked to September 11 terrorists, The Telegraph, November 7, 2009
- Alleged Shooter Tied to Mosque of 9/11 Hijackers, The New York Times, November 8, 2009
- Sperry, Paul E., Infiltration: how Muslim spies and subversives have penetrated Washington, Chapter 12: "The 9/11 Mosque: Dar al-Hijrah," p. 110, Thomas Nelson Inc (2005), ISBN 1595550038, 9781595550033, accessed November 11, 2009
- 10 Cooks, 21,000 Dinners, 30 Nights at www.muslimlinkpaper.com
- Muslim Voters Meet Candidates, Officials at Picnic (washingtonpost.com) at www.washingtonpost.com
- Murphy, Caryle, "Facing New Realities as Islamic Americans," The Washington Post, September 12, 2004, accessed November 11, 2009
- "US imam wanted in Yemen over al-Qaida suspicions". Associated Press. November 10, 2009.
- Imam Johari Abdul-Malik (November 9, 2009). "Dar Al-Hijrah Islamic Center REPUDIATES PRAISE FOR FORT HOOD KILLINGS". Dar Al-Hijrah Islamic Center. Retrieved November 10, 2009.