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Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the ruling Emir of Qatar, has reportedly offered to invest €2.2 billion ($3 billion) over five years to convert Barcelona's Monumental bullring into a 40,000-capacity mosque which would be the biggest in Europe.
The planned mosque, featuring a 300m minaret would be the third-largest in the world outside Mecca and Medina, and would include a conference hall, a 300-capacity Koran study centre and a museum of Islamic art and history.
Monumental was opened in 1914 and became famous as a venue for bullfighting and music concerts. The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Bob Marley and Bruce Springsteen have all played there. No bullfights have been held at Monumental since the activity was banned by the Catalan regional government in 2010 and the building is now used as a bullfighting museum.