Milan Mosque 'to be Closed Down'

July 7, 2008

Author: Staff Writer

Source: BBC News

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7493756.stm

A controversial mosque in the Italian city of Milan is to be shut down, the country's right-wing government says.

The Jenner mosque attracts about 4,000 Muslims each week, with Friday prayers often spilling out on to the street.

Now, after years of complaints from local residents, Italian Interior Minister Roberto Maroni has said he will close the mosque by August.

Rendition

The Jenner mosque is based in a converted garage.

Since it opened as an Islamic cultural centre in 1988, it has outgrown its cramped surroundings - much to the alarm of people living in the neighbourhood, says the BBC's Christian Fraser in Rome.

It has come under the spotlight several times for alleged links to extremism.