Dr. Suat Günsel Mosque which is the largest mosque in Cyprus with 62 domes and 6 minarets, was opened with the participation of a wide protocol including Vice President of Turkey Cevdet Yılmaz, Minister of Industry and Technology Mehmet Fatih Kacır, President of Religious Affairs Prof. Ali Erbaş and President Ersin Tatar of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, President of the National Assembly of the Republic Zorlu Töre, and Prime Minister Ünal Üstel, and representatives from Azerbaijan, Tatarstan, Kazakhstan, Iran, Somalia and Gambia also attended the opening ceremony, which attracted great public interest on the Near East University campus.
Dr. Suat Günsel Mosque brought together the state protocol of Turkeye and TRNC on the Near East University campus and opened its doors for worship on Laylat al-Raghaib, at the beginning of the three months. Dr. Suat Günsel Mosque is the largest mosque in Cyprus with a capacity for 10 thousand people to pray at the same time. At the opening of the Suat Günsel Mosque, Turkey’s Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz, Minister of Industry and Technology Mehmet Fatih Kacır and President of Religious Affairs Prof. Dr. Ali Erbaş represented Republic of Turkey. President Ersin Tatar, President of the Assembly of the Republic Zorlu Töre and Prime Minister Ünal Üstel participated in the state protocol of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. Representatives from Azerbaijan, Tatarstan, Kazakhstan, Iran, Somalia and Gambia also attended the opening ceremony, which attracted great public interest on the Near East University campus.
Near East University Faculty of Theology student Yusuf Ayhan started the ceremony with the recitation of the Holy Quran and opening speeches of the ceremony were delivered by Republic of Turkey Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz, President Ersin Tatar, Prime Minister Ünal Üstel and Near East University Board of Trustees Chairman Prof. Dr. İrfan Suat Günsel.
After the opening speeches, the opening prayer of Dr. Suat Günsel Mosque was made by the President of Religious Affairs, Prof. Dr. Ali Erbaş. Following the opening prayer and ribbon cutting, Republic of Turkey Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz, who inspected the mosque together with the protocol members, gave a specially printed Quran as a gift to Near East University Founding Rector Dr. Suat İrfan Günsel in the mosque that bears his name. The first prayer performed at the Dr. Suat Günsel Mosque was performed by the President of Religious Affairs of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, Prof. Dr. Ahmet Ünsal.
President Ersin Tatar: “Dr. Suat Günsel Mosque, once again proves Turkish Cypriot people’s determination to continue their existence on the basis of equality to the whole world, with their faith, belief and love in their hearts.”
President Ersin Tatar, who started his speech by congratulating the participants’ Laylat al-Raghaib and stating that Dr. Suat Günsel Mosque is much more than a mosque for the TRNC, said that Dr. Suat Günsel Mosque symbolizes the important role of our struggle and the mujahideen in the process of establishing our state. “Our devotion to our religion, combined with the love of our homeland, enabled us to win these lands,” he said. President Ersin Tatar emphasized that Near East University has made many achievements and made a great contribution to the recognition of the TRNC and said, “With these achievements, by promoting the TRNC around the world, we crown the victories we have achieved with the love of our country in our hearts.”
Emphasizing that the people of the TRNC are a nation that protects their beliefs and values, President Ersin Tatar said, “The meaning of protecting all the values that our faith and belief has given us is hidden in the emotional depth of bringing such a beautiful mosque to our country.”
Reminding that the foundations of the Dr. Suat Günsel Mosque were laid 10 years ago, President Ersin Tatar said, “Dr. Suat Günsel Mosque, once again proves Turkish Cypriot people’s determination to continue their existence on the basis of equality to the whole world, with their faith, belief and love in their hearts.”
President Ersin Tatar said, “I would like to thank once again the entire Near East Family, especially to the Founding Rector of Near East University, Dr. Suat Günsel and Chairman of the Board of Trustees Prof. Dr. İrfan Suat Günsel, for bringing such a beautiful monument to us. I hope our mosque will be beneficial. Today, we are putting another seal on the just cause of the Turkish Cypriots. In line with all these studies, we are sending a strong message to the world.”
Cevdet Yılmaz: “Each stone of the Dr. Suat Günsel Mosque, the largest mosque in the TRNC, was created by the hands of Turkish Cypriots. For this reason, this work has an important place. No one can defeat a nation that achieves this.”
Turkish Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz started his speech by saying “Today is the beginning of Three Months. I congratulate your Laylat al-Raghaib and hope that these holy days will bring goodness to the whole Islamic world.” Yılmaz conveyed President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s greetings, affection and congratulations and thanks for the mosque, and congratulated everyone who contributed to the construction of the mosque, including Dr. Suat Günsel.
Turkish Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz said, “We celebrated the 40th anniversary of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus in 2023 with great enthusiasm. I would like to state that this year we will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Cyprus Peace Operation with great enthusiasm. On these meaningful days, I would like to thank all our people who contributed to the establishment of the country.”
Referring to the attacks in Palestine in his speech, Yılmaz said, “The incident we saw in Gaza teaches us that we need to distinguish between the words someone says and their actions. When it comes to words, there is peace, democracy, human rights, morality, moral values, the modern world, modernity, whatever you want, but when you look at reality, there is the act of dropping bombs on children with state-of-the-art planes. We need to see this reality, this truth. We need to look at action, not words.”
Emphasizing that Turkey’s attitude towards Palestine is very clear and that it expects a permanent ceasefire to be declared without any excuses as soon as possible, Yılmaz said that he would then seek a two-state solution with the existence of a Palestinian state, with East Jerusalem as its capital, based on the 1967 borders in accordance with the United Nations resolutions.
Yılmaz said that they claim the same for the TRNC and the island of Cyprus and said, “There are two states here, too. There are two sovereign, independent states, and everything that will be discussed from now on has to be discussed and negotiated between these two states. If you are looking for a solution, this is it. If one has to look at reality and act, this is reality. There is no point in wasting energy by trying over and over again the same methods that have been tried for years and have not yielded results.”
Cevdet Yılmaz said, “Turkish Cypriots can do and achieve many things as they wish” and added, “Each stone of the Dr. Suat Günsel Mosque, the largest mosque in the TRNC, was created by the hands of Turkish Cypriots. For this reason, this work has an important place. No one can defeat a nation that achieves this. This nation can never be erased from the stage of history. Future generations will see these works and move forward into the future, on the basis of their history.”
Prime Minister Ünal Üstel: “Turkish Cypriots never gave up their identity, belief and flag.”
Prime Minister of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, Ünal Üstel, said, “I congratulate your Laylat al-Raghaib on this special day, which is the beginning of the Three Months of the Islamic world. On such a meaningful day, I hope that the TRNC’s largest mosque, Dr. Suat Günsel Mosque, will be beneficial to the entire Islamic world and contribute to the unity of the Islamic world.”
Stating that the foundations of the Dr. Suat Günsel Mosque were laid in 2013 and that it was built with great devotion, Prime Minister Ünal Üstel said, “Each stone of the Dr. Suat Günsel Mosque came from the hands of the Turkish Cypriot people. This special structure is a great success put together by the Near East Family and the Turkish Cypriot people. Dr. Suat Günsel Mosque will be among the mosques with six minarets in Turkey and will be another proof of what Turkish Cypriots can actually achieve.”
Prime Minister Ünal Üstel said, “On such a special day, we would like to thank the Near East Family and especially I would like to thank Dr. Suat Günsel wholeheartedly. The Near East Family is undertaking important projects with its university, major steps in the field of healthcare and GÜNSEL electric vehicles. We congratulate them once again for all these achievements and I hope that Dr. Suat Günsel Mosque will be beneficial.”
Prof. Dr. İrfan Suat Günsel: “This mosque, which is also a symbol of Turkish Cypriots, who are connected to Anatolia with unbreakable ties, is the symbol of dedication to their homeland. I hope it will bring goodness to our country and our people.”
Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Near East University, Prof. Dr. İrfan Suat Günsel continued his speech by saying, “Welcome to the opening ceremony of Suat Günsel Mosque which I wholeheartedly believe that will stand out as one of the most special signs of the Turkish Cypriot people on this land.”
“This monumental work, which is a modern interpretation of Ottoman architecture with its 62 domes and 6 minarets, was completed with the talents, mastery and labor of the Turkish Cypriots, who have maintained their presence on the island for centuries and will continue to do so,” said Prof. Dr. İrfan Suat Günsel, and added, “This mosque, which is also a symbol of Turkish Cypriots, who are connected to Anatolia with unbreakable ties, is the symbol of dedication to their homeland. I hope it will bring goodness to our country and our people.”
“Dr. Suat Günsel Mosque was not built just for today! Along with the spiritual meaning it carries, it was also built as a monument, a symbol that the Turkish Cypriots will leave to the future. Because of this, the entire architectural design, engineering and construction process was completed with the resources of this country. Stained glass, chandeliers, finials, dome and interior decorations, wood and stone workmanship in its entirety… It was designed, produced and implemented with the talent and labor of Turkish Cypriots,” said Prof. Dr. İrfan Suat Günsel and concluded his remarks by saying, “Moreover, many of them in Cyprus were experienced in Dr. Suat Günsel Mosque for the first time and provided our people with the opportunity to prove their abilities. Dr. Suat Günsel Mosque brought stained glass artists, stone and wood processing mastery, aluminum casting talent and many other skills to this country.”
“I would like to state clearly that from Dr. Suat Günsel Mosque to GÜNSEL, every work born on the Near East University campus is a result of our efforts to keep up with the progress of our homeland, Turkey, and to be worthy of our homeland. While this effort carries our country and state into the future, I have absolute faith that it will add strength to our homeland.” Prof. Dr. İrfan Suat Günsel concluded his speech by saying, “I would like to express my gratitude to Dr. Suat Günsel, who brought this work to the Turkish Cypriots with his dedication and belief. In addition, I would like to thank Prof. Dr. Türköz Kolozali who took over all architectural processes, and Ömer Başaranlar and his team who carried out the construction process, and all our artists who left their mark and everyone who contributed.”
Highlights of Dr. Suat Günsel Mosque
Domes and Minarets
It has 62 domes and 6 minarets. In Dr. Suat Günsel Mosque, the main dome has a height of 36.8 meters and a diameter of 23.8 meters. The main dome is surrounded by 61 domes of smaller diameters. There are 27 domes and 9 semi-domes in the mosque section. There are 26 domes in the portico section.
The mosque has six minarets, each of which is 76.2 meters high and has three balconies. The other two minarets, each 56.45 meters high, have two balconies.
The materials used in the domes and minarets, which have gold-colored stainless steel and chrome plating, were determined by the Turkish Cypriot people through a survey.
stained glass windows
Stained glass, designed and prepared by the artists of the Cyprus Museum of Modern Arts in their own workshops, adorns the 104 windows of the mosque.
Realms
In the mosque, the dome and minaret finials are completely cast in aluminum and the largest one is 7 meters long. All castings were made in the workshops on the Near East University campus.
Chandeliers
There are 47 chandeliers in the mosque. The largest chandelier in the main dome has a diameter of approximately 8 meters. All of the chandeliers were designed by the artists of the Cyprus Museum of Modern Arts and produced in their own workshops.
Dome and Interior Decorations
All of the dome and interior decorations of the mosque were completed with oil painting technique by the artists of the Cyprus Museum of Modern Arts, with approximately one year of manual labor.
Wood and Stone Workmanship
The doors, pulpit and other furniture of the mosque, which attract attention with their detailed engravings, were designed and produced by Ikas Furniture, a subsidiary of the Near East Enterprises. As a result of the survey, the public decided to use white stone, unique to Cyprus, in the outer areas of the mosque. Stonemasonry was also carried out by Turkish Cypriot craftsmen.
