According to statistics, in December 2007, there are 278 mosques on the territory of Crimea. These are 84 newly constructed mosques and 48 returned to Muslims, which have been re-established and restored, as well as 146 adapted prayer houses.

The Head of Religious Department of Muslims of Crimea on the construction and returning of religious buildings Ruslan Burnaş said about it QHA.

At the same time, according to available data, the total number of mosques in Crimea amounted about 1700 in 1783 as R. Burnash reported. There were more than 600 mosques by the time of the Russian Revolution in Crimea. As a part of atheism propaganda, Bolsheviks destroyed a lot of religious buildings of the Crimean Muslims and other mosques that were saved have been used for other purposes.

There are only five mosques such as Khan mosque (was built in 1532), Tahtalı mosque (1707) and Mullah Mustafa mosque (the beginning of the 20th century) in Bahchasaray, Friday’s mosque, 1552) in Kezlev (Evpatoriya) and Kebir mosque (1508) in Aqmescit (Simferopil) in the period after the deportation of the Crimean Tatars from Crimea in 1944.

At present there are number of difficulties of returning the religious buildings to Muslim communities of Crimea. In spite of the presidential decree of returning the religious objects to religious communities authorities find a lot of reasons not to execute the decree at the local level.

'In spite of the fact, there are archival documents confirming the ownership of some buildings to the religious, historical ones, they are sold and privatized, what makes the returning of these constructions more difficult' - the Assistant Mufti of Crimea Hayder Ismail noted.

In particular, Crimean Moslems are not enabled to restore Selim Mosque in Theodosia. 'We are dealing with this problem more than 10 years, we collect and present documents. We apply constantly to the Presidential Office in Crimea and directly to the President but these all issues are hampered' – adviser of the Mufti of Crimean Moslems on interethnical relations Arsen Alchik told.

By QHA

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