Muslim cemetery in Amsterdam

The Amsterdam municipality is planning a new Muslim section in the municipal cemetery, granting 400,000 euro for the project which will allow for a maximum of 2500 graves.

There are already 45 cemeteries with a Muslim section. The Amsterdam cemetery is meant to be egalitarian, allowing any Muslim to be buried in it, with no plans of sub-division based on belief.

The cemetery will be built according to Muslim tradition - signs with verses from the koran at the entrance, and a place for the ritual washing. The graves will be positioned towards Mecca.

Muslim tradition requires that the ground for burial be pure. The place chosen has therefore not been used, and the ground has been sifted before use.

According to the article, Muslim graves cannot be cleared out after several decades, and therefore the Muslim organizations involved in the plans want to make arrangements to collect the bones after a specific time and move them elsewhere.

[I have not found any source saying so, but until now, Muslim cemeteries elsewhere did not "keep" their holiness for more than 40 years]

Source: Nederlands Dagblad (Dutch)

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