Great Mosque of al-Nuri, Mosul
The Great Mosque of al-Nuri (Arabic: جامع النوري, romanized: Jāmiʿ an-Nūrī) was a mosque in Mosul, Iraq. It was famous for its leaning minaret, which gave the city its nickname "the hunchback" (Arabic: الحدباء, romanized: al-Ḥadbāˈ). Tradition holds that the mosque was first built in the late 12th century, although it underwent many renovations over the years. The mosque withstood various hostile invading forces over its 850-year history until it was destroyed, along with its distinctive minaret, in the Battle of Mosul in 2017.
Not to be confused with Mosul Grand Mosque.
Great Mosque of al-Nuri
Nouri Mosque
Destroyed, reconstruction ongoing
1172–1173 AD
21 June 2017
1 (since destroyed; now under reconstruction)
45 metres (148 ft)
1 (Shrine of Al-Nuri, since destroyed; now under reconstruction)
Brick, stone, hazarbaf
Iraqi troops attributed the destruction of the Great Mosque to the Islamic State[1] in a vandalistic move to destroy it rather than let it go from their hold. The mosque had held a symbolic importance to IS and its leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, as it was used in 2014 by the militants to self-declare their "caliphate". IS's black flag had been flying on the 45-metre minaret after their militants surged across Iraq and Syria seizing territory, and they had promised to never let their flag be lowered from it. Contrary to official accounts and local eyewitnesses, IS alleged that U.S. forces destroyed it. IS's claim was not substantiated. The BBC reported that "IS accused the United States-led coalition aircraft of bombing the site, but experts said a video circulated online appeared to show charges inside the structures exploding."[2]
Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi stated that the destruction of the mosque by IS was a "declaration of defeat",[3] and that "[b]lowing up the al-Hadba minaret and the al-Nuri mosque amounts to an official acknowledgment of defeat [by ISIS]."[4]
As of 2023, the mosque is being reconstructed with significant funding from UNESCO and the United Arab Emirates.[5]
Tomb[edit]
There is a tomb present in the mosque complex, which was actually a repurposed room of an unused Madrasah started by the Seljuk vizier Nizam al-Mulk.[14] Local tradition[14] relates the grave belongs to a saint, Ali al-Asghar ibn al-Hanafiyyah. A symbolic wooden sarcophagus is placed atop the grave as well. However, it is said that the association to Ali al-Asghar was not always there; such a thing only happened after the 13th century reconstruction[14] by the Seljuk ruler Badr al-Din Lu'lu. The tomb is also described to be dedicated to an unspecified personality named Shaykh Al-Nuri[15] however it has also been associated with the mosque's founder, Nur al-Din Mahmud Zangi[16] who was instead buried in Damascus. The shrine was demolished in 2014 during the ISIL takeover of Mosul, and a parking lot was built atop it.[14]