Shovels hit the ground for a ceremony marking the future site of a new Islamic school in south Edmonton on Wednesday. Omar Ibn Al-Khattab Academy (OIAA) will begin construction in the empty field located on 86 Street and 41 Avenue. “It feels great to be here and to start the real work to move it from paper to action,” Dr. Osama Namaruish, with OIAA, told CTV News Edmonton after the ground-breaking ceremony. Namaruish said he has been waiting for this moment for five years and that the school will be the biggest of its kind in the city’s south side, with a mosque built on site. “It feels (good) to have a place where interfaith can happen, where they can communicate to neighbours around them and they can show the real picture of Islam and Muslims to the rest of the community of Edmonton,” he said, adding they are expecting to start with 300 students in the first phase of opening and they hope to grow that number to more than a thousand. Ward Karhiio councillor Keren Tang spoke during the ceremony citing a shortage of K-9 and high schools in the area. “When I look around, yes, there is still quite a bit of farmland, but there’s much potential for growth, for development in this part of the city,” Tang said. “And I appreciate your vision that you want to build a school and a community close to where people live.” Namaruish said the school will welcome everyone to join the centre and learn more about Islam and to start that dialog of understanding. “We need to be stronger through our diversity, to build the community here, to make Canada a stronger country together, (and) we can do that.” OIAA said they hope to have construction complete by the end of next summer and be open for the 2026 school year in September. The first phase of the school will be K-9. With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Dave Mitchell and Nahreman Issa
