The Algerian President, Abdelmadjid Tebboune, officially inaugurated the Great Mosque of Algiers, which is the third largest mosque in the world and the largest in Africa, after being absent from its first prayer held in 2020 due to a COVID-19 infection. Images broadcast by state television showed President Tebboune arriving at the mosque located in the eastern suburb of Algiers to oversee its full opening.
In October 2020, Tebboune could not inaugurate the mosque due to his COVID-19 infection, and he was represented by then-Prime Minister Abdelaziz Djerad, who opened only the prayer hall, which can accommodate 120,000 worshippers and is adorned with turquoise blue carpets featuring floral designs in a traditional Algerian style.
In addition to the prayer hall, the Great Mosque of Algiers includes 12 buildings, comprising a library with a million books, a lecture hall, an Islamic art and history museum, and a higher school for Islamic sciences for doctoral students. Its minaret, visible from all parts of the capital and even from neighboring cities, is the tallest in the world at a height of 267 meters, equivalent to 43 floors.
