Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Ahmad Eissa and Cairo Governor Khaled Abdel Aal inaugurated yesterday Suleiman Pasha El-Khadem Mosque, also known as Sariat Al-Jabal Mosque, at Salah El-Din Citadel in El-Qalaa neighborhood after its restoration.
Minister Eissa and Governor Abdel Aal were accompanied by Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities Dr. Mustafa Waziry, Deputy Cairo Governor Jihan Abdel Moneim along with Assistant Minister of Tourism and Permanent Secretary of the Ministry Ahmad Ebeid, Assistant Minister of Tourism for Antiquities and Museums Projects Hesham Samir, and several officials of the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, the Cairo Governorate, and the Supreme Council of Antiquities.
Following the inauguration, Minister Eissa, Governor Abdel Aal, and the attendees took a tour inside the mosque to follow up on the work carried out under the restoration project. They also listened to a detailed explanation from the Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, Mustafa Waziry, about the restoration project, the mosque’s history, and its unique architectural features.
Eissa expressed his happiness to attend the inauguration ceremony of this mosque, considering it a part of Egypt's cultural heritage. He also praised the great effort of the restoration team since the beginning of the project, adding that it is one of the most important and accurate restoration projects that the ministry has completed successfully and opened recently. He wished that Egyptian and foreign visitors would enjoy this unique monument, its artistic designs, its history in particular, and the history of historic Cairo in general.
Moreover, Eissa pointed out that the opening of this mosque is one of the most significant outcomes of the financial reform witnessed recently by the Supreme Council of Antiquities. He also asserted the commitment to restore and rehabilitate all archaeological sites within the Greater Cairo area this year as part of the ministry's plan to make Cairo a self-sustaining tourist destination where tourists can enjoy all the tourism and archaeological attractions.
Eissa also said that the public spending on antiquities projects increased by about LE3 billion for the current fiscal year compared to the previous year, which witnessed spending of about 1.5 billion. noting that the financial reform witnessed by the Supreme Council of Antiquities resulted in the council's ability to self-finance all projects through the increase in ticket revenues by about 5 times in two years.
Eissa furthermore described the reopening of the mosque as a massive investment in the field of tourism, as it contributes to providing a unique tourist experience for visitors from Egyptians and tourists from all over the world, in light of the state's keenness to improve the quality of the tourist experience in Egyptian tourist destinations, especially in line with the increasing growth in the tourism movement witnessed by Egypt recently and its significant recovery of the tourism rate after the Corona pandemic.
After the inauguration, Minister Eissa inspected the services area surrounding the Salah El-Din Citadel to follow up on the ongoing work to build several bazaars, cafes, and parking lots in the area to offer a better tourist experience, given it is one of the most important national strategic axes of the tourist development in Egypt.
Meanwhile, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities Mustafa Waziry reviewed during the tour the history of the mosque and its unique architecture, noting that the project began in 2018 and took about 5 years at a cost of approximately 5 million pounds. He explained that all the work was carried out under the supervision of the Islamic, Coptic, and Jewish antiquities sectors of the Supreme Council of Antiquities.
Waziry added that The restorations included removing chalk formations, dust, dirt, and necessary maintenance of the marble in the structure.
Moreover, he emphasized that reopening this mosque is a new addition to the historical sites that can be visited in the Salah El-Din Citadel, increasing tourism movement in the area.
Regarding the history and design of the mosque, the mosque was built in 1528 AD and was registered as a monument in 1951 AD.
The mosque is located in the eastern part of the Citadel of Saladin, built in the Ottoman style and characterized by its domes and pencil –shaped minarets. The interior walls are covered with ceramic tiles.
The mosque was originally built for the Janissaries, a faction of the Ottoman army that entered Egypt in 1517 AD with Sultan Salim and settled within the northern walls of the Citadel after a large part of the Al-Nasir Muhammad bin Qalawun Mosque was destroyed and was no longer suitable for prayer services.
Source: Media Department, Cairo Governorate
