Moribah Dukuly’s dream was to build a mosque in his home country Liberia. In 2015, Dukuly traveled for almost 6 thousand kilometers from his homeland to study at Bursa’s Uludağ University at the Faculty of Theology with the support of the Ipekyolu International Student Association. He fell ill while he was still in his university preparation year and succumbed to his illness. He passed on at the early age of 20.
The body of the young student could not be sent to his family for burial in his home country since there were no direct flights from Turkey to Liberia. The domestic conflict that was taking place in the country also made it more difficult for Dukuly’s body transfer. Hence he was buried in Bursa as a martyr of knowledge.
At the burial ceremony, Osman Dukuly, the brother of the young martyr who was also studying in Sakarya explained, “After finishing university, Moribah wanted to return to his country and build a mosque in his hometown, he wanted to meet the need of Islamic education in his country.”
Upon hearing the statement, IHH Humanitarian Relief Foundation and Ipekyolu International Student Association acted to make Moribah Dukuly’s dream come true through a mosque construction project. In a short time IHH completed the construction of the mosque, and the mosque that was named after Moribah Dukuly is now open for worship in the Margini region of the Kakuta city in Liberia. Built on an area of 150 sq meters, the mosque has the capacity of 300 worshippers. The mosque is built in a region where Muslims are a minority, and it is believed that the mosque will benefit a total of 500 people from the area and surrounding villages.
“We fulfilled his bequest”
At the emotional opening ceremony, Chairman of the IHH Bursa Branch Hüseyin Kaptan said they were delighted to have fulfilled the bequest of a martyr of knowledge that had lost his life in their city. Kaptan thanked everyone who contributed to realizing the project.
“I am the world’s luckiest mother”
Lastly, Moribah’s mother Meryem Dukuly spoke to the crowd at the mosque opening that her son’s realized dream made her feel like the luckiest mother in the world.
