Athens mosque nearly ready to open

A marble fountain is seen on the plot in Votanikos where the capital’s first state mosque is expected to start operating in May. Works on the exterior areas have been completed and the finishing touches are being made, Kathimerini understands. The mosque’s mihrab – a niche in the wall indicating the direction of Mecca, toward which all Muslims pray – is in place. Education and Religious Affairs Minister Costas Gavroglou is soon expected to approve the candidate presented by the committee overseeing the prayer site’s operation for the mosque’s imam.