Three Muslim investors have bought a building in Reykjavík with the intention of creation a Muslim cultural center. The purpose of the center, Fréttablaðið reports, will be to provide assistance to Muslims in maintaining their faith, and to introduce Islam to Icelanders.
Although the building won’t be available for at least another year, the investors are already excited about the work ahead.
“The idea is not that this will be a mosque but rather a cultural center that will be open to everyone,” one investor, Hussein Aldaoudi told Fréttablaðið.
Aldaoudi, who is not affiliated with the Muslim Society of Iceland, added that he doesn’t think there’s a need for a mosque in Iceland, as Muslims in Iceland have assimilated well. “We can pray anywhere, but a cultural center will without a doubt be a place of prayer, among other things.”
He, along with the other two investors, Sulaiman Abdullah Alshiddi of Saudia Arabia and Sandra Maoi from Norway, are prepared to invest 240 to 250 million ISK in the project.