Merksem (Eurotoday Newspaper) – The Ahmadiyya Muslim community held its annual New Year’s cleanup in Antwerp, with dozens of volunteers, including children and seniors, clearing fireworks debris and litter in Merksem and the city centre.
As VRT News reported, the Ahmadiyya Muslim community took part in its annual street cleanup in Antwerp on New Year’s Day.
“Our community has about five hundred members throughout Antwerp,”
says Imam Wagas Mobasher.
“Today we’re here with a wonderful group of volunteers. Young and old are helping out.”
Early in the morning, Jan 1, 2025, volunteers gathered and divided into 2 groups. One group cleaned the area around the mosque in Merksem. The other group went to the city centre. Volunteers picked up bottles, fireworks remains, and other waste from roads, sidewalks, and public spaces.
What drives the Ahmadiyya community’s 18-Year New Year’s cleanup in Antwerp?
Imam Mobasher said the action is part of a long-standing tradition within the community. He explained that cleanliness and service are key principles they follow. He mentioned that the cleanup is meant to support the city and help maintain public spaces used by everyone.
“We are a community of servants. We want to demonstrate that we contribute to a peaceful society for everyone. We worship God by serving His creation, and therefore also by helping our fellow human beings.”
Officials mentioned that the New Year’s cleanup has become a regular event for the Ahmadiyya Muslim community and is now part of its yearly schedule. The action is one of several social activities the community carries out during the year.
“This tradition started eighteen years ago,”
Mobasher explains.
“Every year, we clean up fireworks and trash left behind after the festivities. It’s our way of starting the new year on a positive note.”
Alongside the cleanup, the Ahmadiyya community organises blood donation drives in cooperation with health services. Volunteers also visit nursing homes.
“We want to build bridges between communities,”
says Mobasher.
“Making allies, getting to know each other, living together. We don’t care who believes in what. It’s about connection.”
Starting in January 2008, the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community in the City of Antwerp has been carrying out their annual street cleaning project, which takes place after New Year’s Eve celebrations, on January 1st every year since then.
The Street Cleanup is conducted each year by Members of the Ahmadiyya Muslim community in Merksem and downtown Antwerp, and similar street cleanups occurred on January 1, 2023, 2024, and 2025.
Comments
20 responses to “Ahmadiyya Community Mobilizes 500 Volunteers for Antwerp Street Cleanup”
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Looks like the Ahmadiyya community is doing more for Antwerp’s cleanliness than most politicians do for their own constituents! Who knew that picking up fireworks and litter could be the new resume-builder? 😂
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Cleaning up after the New Year’s revelries? Such a novel idea! Who knew that picking up fireworks debris could be the new hot business strategy in Antwerp? 😂🚮
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Always nice to see a community group cleaning up after the rest of us have partied too hard — who knew the New Year’s resolution market included street sweeping? 🤷♂️ 500 volunteers? Must be some serious competition on who can pick up the most confetti! 🎉
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Only in Belgium do we start the New Year by picking up after the fireworks like it’s some sort of national sport. Who knew a cleanup could be so… festive? 🎉🇧🇪
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Seems like the Ahmadiyya community has found a great way to kick off the new year—by turning Antwerp into their personal litter-picking playground. Who needs fireworks when you can have a good old-fashioned clean-up crew? 😂🧹
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500 volunteers for a street cleanup? That’s just the Ahmadiyya community’s way of making the rest of us look like we’re still nursing a hangover on New Year’s Day! 🍾🧹
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Look at them go, 500 volunteers cleaning up after the party like it’s their second job—who needs a New Year’s resolution when you have a community cleanup to kickstart the year? 😂 Just imagine the fireworks next year: “We cleaned up, so you can mess up!”
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Looks like the Ahmadiyya community has cracked the secret formula for starting the New Year: pick up after the fireworks like it’s a high-stakes game of tidy-up. Who knew cleaning could be so trendy? 🧹✨
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Cleaning up after a night of revelry? Bravo! Nothing says “Happy New Year” like sweeping away the remnants of last night’s bad decisions – and with 500 volunteers, it’s practically a community flash mob! 🎉🧹
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500 volunteers, you say? Clearly, the Ahmadiyya community must have taken a masterclass in turning a hangover into a community service project. Quite the clever way to sweep away the confetti and hang onto those resolutions, eh? 😏💪
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Oh, how original—500 folks picking up after a wild night of fireworks and revelry. Truly, nothing says “new year, new me” like a community-wide tidy-up, right? 🎉🧹
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Looks like the Ahmadiyya community has turned New Year’s Day into the local version of a spring clean, who knew picking up after the fireworks was the latest trend? 🤷♂️ Bet the rest of us are just too busy nursing our hangovers to notice!
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Well, nothing says “New Year, new beginnings” quite like a community of 500 volunteers scrubbing away last night’s questionable decisions! 😂 Who knew cleaning could be the hottest New Year’s Day activity in Antwerp?
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Looks like the Ahmadiyya community is making sure the only thing that sparkles on New Year’s Day is their commitment to cleanliness, not last night’s fireworks leftovers. Cheers to starting the year off by sweeping up after the fun – talk about a tidy resolution! 🧹✨
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Cleaning up after a night of fireworks and fun? How original! Next, they’ll be organizing a ‘bring your own broom’ party for the entire city. 🧹🎉
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Fancy a clean-up on New Year’s Day? Only in Antwerp would 500 folks trade post-party hangovers for a trash collection – truly a refreshing way to start the year, innit? 😂🍾
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Only in Belgium do you find a New Year’s celebration that ends with a tidy-up! Who needs a fresh start when you can just sweep last night’s confetti under the rug? 😂
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Only in Antwerp do we start the New Year by picking up after the fireworks—who needs resolutions when you’ve got 500 volunteers making the streets cleaner than my office? 😂🇧🇪
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500 volunteers to clean up after New Year’s? What a revolutionary concept! Next, they’ll be proposing an annual event to, I don’t know, maybe not trash the place in the first place? 😂
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Cleanin’ up after a wild New Year’s bash, eh? Talk about a fresh start—who knew the secret to a peaceful society involved a few broomsticks and some elbow grease! 😂
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