Dourou backs plans to construct Athens mosque
Attica governor Rena Dourou has backed long-delayed plans to construct an official mosque in Athens.
Addressing the regional council on Thursday, Dourou said that building a Muslim place of worship in the Greek capital was a sign of respect for human rights, but also a matter of national security. The existence of a large number of makeshift mosques, usually set up in cramped garages or dingy warehouses, complicates the authorities’ task of monitoring extremists and radicalized individuals, Dourou said.
Plans to construct a state-funded mosque in the western Athens neighborhood of Votanikos have been stalled by red tape as well as by opposition from nationalists and religious groups.
