Biden visits Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque

ABU DHABI, 8th March, 2016 (WAM) – United States (US) Vice President, Joe Biden, and his accompanying delegation, visited yesterday the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi. They were accompanied by Reem bint Ibrahim Al Hashimy, Minister of State for International Cooperation and Head of Honour Mission, Barbara A. Leaf, US Ambassador to the UAE, Yousef Al Obaidly, Director-General of the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque Centre. During the tour, the guests visited the halls and corridors of the mosque. Biden was briefed on the beginnings of its foundation, and components of this religious and cultural edifice. He acquainted himself with the diverse and architectural styles used in its construction. The tour also included the outer courtyard of the mosque, where he was also briefed by one of the cultural guides about the pillars that straddle the courtyard of the mosque, and clad in white marble, and decorated with floral carvings and colourful mosaic. The guest was also briefed about the great role played by the centre in the definition of the tolerant Islamic culture and promotion of the cultural interaction among different cultures and peoples around the world. Biden and his entourage also visited the tomb of the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, where they recalled his qualities and values and deeds, which contributed to promotion of the culture of tolerance, co-existence and peace among the different peoples of the world. At the end of the visit, the guest was presented a copy of the book "Spaces of Light," one of the publications of the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque Centre, which includes a number of shots and pictures on the "Spaces of Light Photography," organised by the Centre annually, and highlights the aesthetics of Islamic architecture in the mosque. Biden was also presented with another copy of the book titled "The Houses of God", which deals with the history of mosques in Islamic history, including the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque. The Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque Centre is affiliated with the Ministry of Presidential Affairs and enjoys support and the follow up by H.H. Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs. It was established to become a cultural and intellectual platform that is formed on the combined basis of cultural and national values. The centre reflects the concepts and values enshrined by the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan in the conscience and consciousness of the UAE, and constitutes an extension to the teachings of our religious values of national identity. – Emirates News Agency, WAM - http://www.wam.ae/en/news/emirates/1395292510247.html