Al-Aqsa Mosque (plestine)

Al-Masjid al-Aqsa, is also known as Al-Aqsa and Bayt al-Muqaddas, is the third holiest site in Islam and is located in the Old City of Jerusalem. The site on which the silver domed mosque sits, along with the Dome of the Rock, also referred to as al-Haram ash-Sharif or "Noble Sanctuary," is the Temple Mount, the holiest site in Judaism, the place where the Temple is generally accepted to have stood. Muslims believe that Muhammad was transported from the Sacred Mosque in Mecca to al-Aqsa during the Night Journey. Islamic tradition holds that Muhammad led prayers towards this site until the seventeenth month after the emigration, when God directed him to turn towards the Ka'aba. The mosque was originally a small prayer house built by the Rashidun caliph Umar, but was rebuilt and expanded by the Umayyad caliph Abd al-Malik and finished by his son al-Walid in 705 CE. After an earthquake in 746, the mosque was completely destroyed and rebuilt by the Abbasid caliph al-Mansur in 754, and again rebuilt by his successor al-Mahdi in 780. Another earthquake destroyed most of al-Aqsa in 1033, but two years later the Fatimid Caliph Ali az-Zahir built another mosque which has stood to the present-day. During the periodic renovations undertaken, the various ruling dynasties of the Islamic Caliphate constructed additions to the mosque and its precincts, such as its dome, facade, its minbar, minarets and the interior structure. When the Crusaders captured Jerusalem in 1099, they used the mosque as a palace and church, but its function as a mosque was restored after its recapture by Saladin in 1187. More renovations, repairs and additions were undertaken in the later centuries by the Ayyubids, Mamluks, Ottomans, the Supreme Muslim Council, and Jordan. Today, the Old City is under Israeli control, but the mosque remains under the administration of the Palestinian-led Islamic waqf. The al-Aqsa Mosque is located on the Temple Mount, referred to by Muslims today as the "Haram al-Sharif" ("The Noble Sanctuary"), an enclosure expanded by King Herod the Great beginning in 20 BCE. The mosque resides on an artificial platform that is supported by arches constructed by Herod's engineers to overcome the difficult topographic conditions resulting from the southward expansion of the enclosure into the Tyropoeon and Kidron valleys. At the time of the Second Temple, the present site of the mosque was occupied by the Royal Stoa, a basilica running the southern wall of the enclosure. The Royal Stoa was destroyed along with the Temple during the sacking of Jerusalem by the Romans in 70 CE. Emperor Justinian built a Christian church on the site in the 530s which was consecrated to the Virgin Mary and named "Church of Our Lady." The church was later destroyed by Khosrau II, the Sassanid emperor, in the early 7th century and left in ruins. The rectangular al-Aqsa Mosque and its precincts are 144,000 square metres (1,550,000 sq ft), although the mosque itself is about 35,000 square metres (380,000 sq ft) and could hold up to 5,000 worshippers. It is 272 feet (83 m) long, 184 feet (56 m) wide dome

Masjid Nabawi – Saudi Arabia

Al Masjid al Nabawi  "Mosque of the Prophet" is a mosque built by the our Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.s) Al Masjid al Nabawi  situated in the city of Medina e munwwara. It is the second holiest site in Islam. It was the second mosque built in history and is now one of the largest mosques in the world. The site was originally adjacent to Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.s)'s house; he settled there after his Hijra (emigration) to Medina in 622. He shared in the heavy work of construction with has Sahabas. The original mosque was an open-air building. The basic plan of the building has been adopted in the building of other mosques throughout the world. The mosque also served as a community center, a court, and a religious school for the Muslims In 1909, it became the first place in the Arabian Peninsula to be provided with electrical lights. One of the most notable features of the site is the a beautiful , and vary attrictive Green Dome (گنبد) over the center of the mosque, originally (amman)Aisha's house where the tomb of Muhammad (s.a.w.s) is located. In 1279 AD, a wooden cupola was built over the tomb which was later rebuilt and renovated multiple times in late 15th century and once in 1817. The dome was first painted green in 1837, and later became known as the Green Dome.

Masjid al Haram (The Holy Mosque) – Saudi Arabia

  Al-Masjid al-Ḥarām (المسجد الحرام‎ )   or the Grand Mosque  surrounds Islam's holiest place, the Kaaba Shareef. It is located in the city of Mecca and is the largest mosque in the world. Muslims around the world turn toward Kaaba while performing any prayer. The current structure covers an area of 356,800 square meters   including the outdoor and indoor praying spaces and can accommodate up to 4 millions worshipers during the Hajj period, one of the largest annual gatherings of people in the world. In 2007, the Masjid went under a extension project which is estimated to last until 2020. King Abdullah bin Abdul-Aziz plans to increase the Masjid's capacity to 2 million with two new minarets, bringing their total to 11 minarets. The cost of the project is 10.6-billion Us Dollers and after completion the mosque will house over 2.5 million worshipers. The mataf (the circumambulation areas around the Kaaba) will also see expansion and all closed spaces will be airconditioned.