Organisers of an Eid prayer festival taking place in Croke Park today have said it is “more important than ever” for people to “stand together” through attendance following the closure of Clonskeagh Mosque. The event has been organised by the Irish Muslim Council.
The High Court heard last month that the Dublin mosque has been closed for a month, amid a dispute over the appointment of new directors to a company behind the Islamic Cultural Centre of Ireland.
The Eid al-Adha Prayer and Festival event will be held on Friday in Ireland’s national stadium for the fifth year in a row, starting from 10:30am. The event, lasting for three and a half hours, is described as “Ireland’s largest Eid Al-Adha gathering at Croke Park,” and as “a day of prayer, unity, and celebration.”
According to organisers, the event will feature halal food stalls, children’s GAA games and activities, henna and face painting, and community stalls. In addition, all proceeds will support Gaza relief efforts, according to organisers.
“This year, with the closure of Clonskeagh Mosque (ICCI), it is more important than ever to stand together as One Ummah in Dublin,” the eventbrite page states.
”A small registration fee is required to ensure genuine attendance (after fraudulent bookings by anti-Muslim groups in 2023),” it adds.
The festival is billed to coincide with Hajj, performed in Makkah, modern day Saudi Arabia, a Muslim pilgrimage consisting of a series of rights and rituals. More than 1.4 million Muslims began the pilgrimage this month, a year after 1,300 people died, mainly due to extreme heat.
“This will be a unique Family Eid festival with Halal food, stalls, face painting, GAA games and also since it will be Yaum ul Jummah, we will also have Jummah Salah at 1:30pm.,” a page advertising the Croke Park event states.
The Jummah Salah, also known as a Friday prayer, is a communal prayer in Islam which is performed every Friday after noon. It involves a sermon delivered by the Iman before the prayer, and is a significant communal gathering for Muslims.
It comes after Gript revealed that An Garda Síochána held recruitment drives at Dublin’s Clonskeagh Mosque just months before the centre was closed over a “heightened security situation” and amid allegations of extremist influence within elements of the organisation.
According to Freedom of Information records released to Gript, Gardaí carried out “recruitment outreach” sessions aimed at “minority target groups” at the Islamic Cultural Centre of Ireland (ICCI) in Clonskeagh on February 23rd and 26th of this year. One session is listed as completed, while the other was marked “in progress”.
Gardaí also had formal outreach to the Co. Mayo Islamic Centre for Friday prayers, the Balbriggan Mosque, the Mosque in Mullingar, the Muslim Sisters of Eire, and more, as reported by Ben Scallan.