Jerusalem, Palestine
Coordinates: 31.778819, 35.229311
Also knows as al-Khanqah al-Salahiyya Mosque, it is located in the Christian Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem, north of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.
Commissioned by Salah ul-Din Ayyubi in 1189 CE. This mosque & Mosque of Omar (رضي الله عنه) are flanking the Church of Holy Sepulchre. They both have identical Minaret
It is said that the establishment of this mosque was key to the preservation of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Such was the foresight of Hz. Umar رضي الله عنه.
This mosque was the only place in Jerusalem where a Palestinian flag could be seen, it was removed in 2009.
Tucked away in the Muslim Quarter of the Old City, It is also said that this is where the famous Muslim general Hz. Salahuddin Ayyubi رحمة الله عليه stayed when he wanted seclusion and carry out nafl prayers.
It was from those roofs of the holiest site in Christianity that Hz. Salahuddin رحمة الله عليه used to observe Jerusalem’s Christian population, according to Imam Ahmad Shalhoub and other locals.
Despite the historical significance of the Khanqah Salihiyya, as the mosque is known, it has few worshipers and rarely hosts visitors.
Shalhoub, who opens and closes the mosque immediately before and after prayers, said it was once bigger.
He and other worshipers point to blocked archways they say show where parts have been lost to Christian groups and other neighbors.
That the Khanqah Salihiyyah-an active Sufi convent until the British took over Palestine in 1917-has faded from Jerusalem’s memory, is a symptom of the weak modern documentation and narration of the city’s Muslim heritage.
