World Mosque Day
Today is August 21. On August 21, 1969, at seven in the morning, Al-Aqsa Mosque, the first Qiblah or direction of prayer of Muslims was set on fire by an Australian Zionist named Michael Dennis Rohan.
The fire burned an area of nearly 1500 square meters of the mosque, including an ancient pulpit dating back eight centuries. Also burned were the altar of Prophet Zachariah, and place of worship of forty other prophets. The arches and the main foundations on which the dome rests also caught fire making the roof of the mosque collapse.
The day is commemorated every year as the World Mosque Day.
