Tradition credits Nur ad-Din Zangi with building the mosque in 1172 and 1173. Ibn al-Athir says he ordered his nephew Fakhr al-Din to oversee it, though a 2002 study gives 1170 to 1172. The article does not describe the original plan or hall dimensions. The minaret, al-Hadba, meaning the hunchback, originally stood 148 feet (45 m) tall with seven bands of geometric brickwork. It leaned noticeably by the 14th century, and the cause is disputed.
Iraqi forces reported that the mosque and minaret were blown up on June 21, 2017. Islamic State-linked media blamed a U.S. airstrike, which the article says was not substantiated.
The UAE provided 50.4 million dollars for reconstruction with UNESCO. The plan keeps the minaret's square base as a memorial and builds a replica minaret. A design by Egyptian architects was chosen from 123 entries in 2021, and critics said it resembled Gulf Arab architecture. The mosque reopened for worship in 2024.
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