The building of huge mosques throughout Germany is nothing short of a “a bid for power and influence, a land grab”, according to Ralph Giordano, 85, the German Jewish writer and Holocaust survivor, in an interview with The Times that is likely to stir Muslim anger. The comments from Mr Giordano came as the Muslim community of Cologne – about 120,000 strong – prepared to lay the foundation stone for yet another giant mosque, one of more than a hundred that are being planned or built across the country. Barely six weeks ago another mosque, capable of accommodating 1,200 worshippers, was opened in Duisburg in the nearby Ruhr region of northwest Germany. Spiky minarets are starting to punctuate the German urban skyscape – and the rumble of discontent from nonMuslim Germans is growing louder. One result is that the issue of immigration seems sets to be on the agenda in the general election next year. The Christian Democrats resolved this week that the German language should be anchored in the constitution – seen as a slight by the three million Turks who live in the country.
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