Turkish President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan

Turkish President Set Hagia Sophia As Mosque

Turkish President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, said that starting today, Friday (10/7), the function of the Hagia Sophia residing in Istanbul will become a mosque. As reported by AFP, Erdogan's announcement was made after the Turkish State Assembly announced canceling the cabinet decision in 1934 and re-functioning Hagia Sophia into a mosque.

The State Assembly on July 2 held a hearing with the Association of the Protection of the Historic Monuments and the Environment of Turkey on the proposal to re-function the Hagia Sophia as a mosque. During this time the Hagia Sophia status became a museum.

In the Byzantine Empire, the Hagia Sophia was a church. When Sultan Muhammad al-Fatih (Mehmed II) seized Constantinople (Istanbul) from the rule of the Byzantine Empire in 1453, he turned the building into a mosque.

However, the Turkish government under the leadership of the late secular nationalist President Mustafa Kemal decided to make the building a museum.

Efforts to change the status and re-function the Hagia Sophia as a mosque have been carried out since 2005. Two years ago the Turkish Constitutional Court had rejected the proposal.

Erdogan's decision was responded to by various parties, including ministers in the cabinet. Before the court's decision was issued, the Turkish Minister of Law, Abdulhamit Gul, uploaded a photo of Hagia Sophia on his Twitter account with the words "Congratulations on a good Friday,"

Meanwhile, Minister of Finance, who is also Erdogan's son-in-law, Berat Albayrak, tweeted via Twitter, stating Hagia Sophia could be used again for Muslim prayers soon. On the other hand, the Turkish Minister of Culture, Lissa Mendoni, expressed disappointment at Erdogan's decision.

The residents who were waiting for the decision of the State Assembly immediately sang the takbir after the decision was made.

Source: https://bit.ly/2WbQZaV