Aladža Mosque

The Aladža Mosque, also known as the "Colorful Mosque" (Šarena džamija), is a mosque located in Foča, in the Republika Srpska political division of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Built in 1549 CE, during the Ottoman era, the mosque is considered one of the most beautiful and important examples of Ottoman architecture in Europe and, along with the Gazi Husrev-beg Mosque in Sarajevo and the Ferhadija Mosque in Banja Luka, it is one of the most important Ottoman-era mosques in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The mosque was completely destroyed by the VRS with pre-planted explosives at the beginning of the Bosnian War in 1992, and levelled to the ground; along with the left over stones and rubble from the mosque being hidden all over Foča to prevent its reconstruction. After many years of searching for the stones once the Bosniak refugees of Foča began to return, and sourcing the funds necessary for the reconstruction of the mosque, its reconstruction was started in 2016, and was completed in 2018.