Qa'dah 19, 1431 / Oct. 27, 2010, SPA -- In the affluent Argentine suburb of Palermo, the two minarets of King Fahd Islamic Cultural Center - named after the late Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd bin Abdul Aziz - may Allah have mercy on him - stand sixty meters high in the sky. This Centre was inaugurated by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud - may Allah protect him - on 27 Jumada II 1421 AH corresponding to October 25, 2000 and former President of Argentina Fernando la Rua. Today, the center celebrates its tenth anniversary. With an area of 36,000 square meters, the center is located behind the Botanical Garden and features an Islamic style mixing the civilization of the East with the Latin South. Intended to contribute to the consolidation of relations between Saudi Arabia and the Republic of Argentina, the center came to existence following a generous donation by the late Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd bin Abdul Aziz - may Allah have mercy on him - of USD30 million for its construction. The beginning goes back to 1976 when the Embassy of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques in Argentina was opened. The former Saudi ambassador Fouad Nadhir noticed the need of Muslims for a cultural center and mosque to be frequented by Muslims to perform their rituals and practice their cultural and social activities. He proceeded to make contacts at various formal levels especially the executive and legislative branches in Argentina finding sympathy from government agencies, including the head of state. The idea to build the Islamic Center began to materialize after the visit of former Argentine President Carlos Menem to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in 1992 when he expressed to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd bin Abdulaziz the desire of the Government of Argentina to present a gift of a piece of land to the Kingdom for the construction of an Islamic cultural center on it. King Fahd - may Allah have mercy on him - expressed his thanks and appreciation to His Excellency the President of the Republic, and promised to finance the construction project at his own expense. This was a strong impetus to the intensive efforts which lasted for twenty years. Prince Abdulaziz bin Fahd bin Abdulaziz, Minister of State, Member of the Cabinet and President of the Cabinet Presidency Court, contributed to the efforts when he patronized a ceremony to lay the foundation stone in 1997 in the presence of Argentine high level personalities. --More
