St. Francis of Assisi Cathedral, Laayoune

St. Francis of Assisi Cathedral Spanish Cathedral
Cathédrale de Saint François d'Assise
Location	Laayoune (El Aaiún)
Country	Western Sahara Disputed by  SADR  Morocco
Denomination	Roman Catholic Church

The St. Francis of Assisi Cathedral^[1] (Spanish: Catedral de San Francisco de Asís de El Aaiún French: Cathédrale de Saint François d'Assise) or just Spanish Cathedral, is the name given to a religious building affiliated with the Catholic church that serves as the cathedral church of the apostolic prefecture of Western Sahara (Praefectura Apostolica de Sahara Occidentali). It is located in the city of Laayoune (El Aaiún),^[2] Western Sahara,^[3] a territory that is in dispute between Morocco and the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic.

Internal View

The church was built in 1954, during the Spanish colonial presence in the Spanish Sahara with the design of architect Diego Méndez, author of the project of "Valley of the Fallen" in San Lorenzo de El Escorial in Spain. Today, the cathedral is in charge of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate and serves the small Spanish community in the city is still present and active personnel of the UN mission in the country.

See also

• Roman Catholicism in Western Sahara
• Roman Catholicism in Morocco

References