Claim: Several social media posts have claimed a photo of the Büyük Çamlıca Mosque, in Turkey, as the newly commissioned National Mosque of Ghana Complex.
Verdict: False. The photo being circulated as the National Mosque of Ghana Complex, is the Büyük Çamlıca Mosque, in Turkey.
Full text:
A photo being circulated on social media is alleged to be the newly commissioned National Mosque of Ghana Complex for the Muslim Ummah.
The photo in question shows a wide aerial night-view of what is supposed to be the National Mosque of Ghana Complex as well as revealing the skylines of other close but sparsely aligned residential and non-residential facilities of the location, where the National Mosque of Ghana Complex is believed to have been constructed.
It would be recalled that President Akufo-Addo commissioned the National Mosque of Ghana Complex for the Muslim Ummah, on Friday, July 16, 2021.
Following the public unveiling of the facility, some Ghanaians took to social media to celebrate the completion of the imposing architectural project. The posts were complemented with a night scene image of a mosque believed to be the newly commissioned National Mosque of Ghana Complex.
Verification:
A Yandex image search reveals that the widely circulated picture is the Büyük Çamlıca Mosque, in Turkey.
The Büyük Çamlıca Mosque, is Turkey’s largest mosque, with four minarets with three balconies, is 107.1 meters high, and two minarets with two balconies are 90 meters high, dedicated to the Manzikert Victory, according to AA News.
Other unique features, as seen in the circulated photo, include the 72 meters high main dome of the mosque, which symbolizes the 72 nations living in Turkey.
It also has one of the largest temple doors in the world, with its main gate 5 meters wide, 6.5 meters high and weighing 6 tons.
The photo is shared by Getty Images here and here and is identified as the Camlica Mosque in Istanbul, Turkey. Some of them have been online since 2016.
Also, an Instagram handle, alhambraapart_hotel, operated by Alhambra Apart Hotel, in Istanbul, shows the same picture which was posted on July 4, 2019, over two years ago.
A Google map satellite view of the Büyük Çamlıca Mosque confirms it to be the viral photo purported to be the Ghana National Mosque.
About the National Mosque of Ghana
The Complex contains a grand mosque, the second-largest in West Africa, an office complex for the National Chief Imam, a clinic fitted with laboratories, a pharmacy, a library and a morgue.
With a Turkish Islamic civilisation architectural signature, the 15,000 seater-capacity mosque complex was built on a 42-acre land, at Kanda, according to Graphic Online.
“This beautiful complex is a replica of the famous Blue Mosque in Istanbul, Turkey, which has become one of the most visited mosques in the world for the purposes of tourism. I expect that we should also nurture and take care of this mosque, and build its profile as a tourist destination for travellers to our country,” Citinewsroom reported President Akufo-Addo to have said.
The Turkish non-governmental organisation (NGO), Human Development International (HUDAI), provided funding, with the support of the Turkish government and some Ghanaian Muslim philanthropists.
Conclusion:
Based on the available facts, we can sufficiently conclude that the newly completed National Mosque of Ghana Complex, for the Islamic fraternity, which is located at Kanda, in the Ayawaso East Municipality of the Greater Accra Region, is not what has been widely portrayed on social media.
