Many Qatar residents have been dismayed to find that there actually is a place in Doha that prohibits the presence of children.

Surprisingly, that place is not a five-star restaurant, but Qatar’s new state-of-the-art Sheikh Muhammad Ibn Abdul Wahhab Mosque, also known as the State Mosque.

The merits of the ban, which technically has been around for months but is just now being enforced, is already being debated on Twitter:

Two nights ago, we also were sorely disappointed to find our children were not welcome at the mosque.

On the women’s side, our toddler and I were turned away from sunset prayers (when the mosque was fairly empty). When I protested, I was offered a prayer rug and shown to a corner near the ablution room, but was still not allowed to go upstairs to pray.

Omar fared better carrying our infant on the men’s side, with the guard mentioning the ban but laughing about it, but was still lectured by another man attending prayers about bringing a baby into the mosque.

Thoughts on this?

Credit: Top photo by Omar Chatriwala