Sufi faithful performed zikr inside the war-damaged Sheikh GaribAllah Mosque in Omdurman. The GharibAllah mosque has been open for over 100 years and has never stopped servicing the neighbourhood, except for two weeks in 2025. Heavy fighting in the area forced its brief closure for safety reasons. “This mosque was the shelter, the hospital, it was the safe place that people came to”.
OMDURMAN MAY 1: Sufi faithful performed zikr inside the war-damaged Sheikh GaribAllah Mosque in Omdurman, on the outskirts of the Sudanese capital, on Friday. The devotional practice involves ecstatic recitations of Allah’s names, or passages of the Quran, accompanied by rhythmical breathing and physical movement. The GharibAllah mosque has been open for over 100 years and has never stopped servicing the neighbourhood, except for two weeks in 2025.
Heavy fighting in the area forced its brief closure for safety reasons, but it soon reopened to offer shelter for many in need. It is a feat of endurance for the small mosque that was on the frontlines of the battle between the military and the Rapid Support Forces.
Bullet-ridden walls and cracked windows are a permanent reminder of the war for those attending the mosque, one of many Sufi houses of worship in Sudan. But for those praying there on Friday, they also signify the safe haven that the mosque continued to provide throughout the fighting.
– “This mosque was the shelter, the hospital, it was the safe place that people came to,” explained Wael Shafiq, the mosque’s youth leader.
Community member Mahmud Mirghani Salman explained that the mosque allowed people to gather and check in on each other during the war.
