A mosque in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) capital has been renamed “Mary, Mother of Jesus”.

Sheikh Mohammad bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, Abu Dhabi’s crown prince and deputy supreme commander of the UAE armed forces, ordered that the mosque be renamed to “consolidate bonds of humanity between followers of different religions”.

Reverend Canon Andrew Thompson of St. Andrew’s Church, near the newly renamed mosque, expressed his happiness in an interview with Gulf News.