Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Monday formally reopened the The Church of St. Saviour in Chora, known locally as Kariye, as a mosque.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan formally opened a former Byzantine church in Istanbul as a mosque on Monday, four years after his government had designated it a Muslim house of prayer, despite criticism from neighboring Greece. Turkey formally converted The Church of St. Saviour in Chora, known as Kariye in Turkish, into a mosque in 2020, soon after it similarly turned Istanbul’s landmark Hagia Sophia into a Muslim house of prayer.
Like Hagia Sophia, which was a church for centuries and then a mosque for centuries more, the Chora had operated as a museum for decades before it was ordered turned into a mosque. The Chora’s formal launch as a mosque, however, was delayed as the structure then underwent restoration. Erdoğan on Monday remotely presided over a ceremony marking the opening of the Chora — as well as other recently-restored structures — from a conference hall at his palace complex in Ankara.
In 2020, Erdoğan joined hundreds of worshipers for the first Muslim prayers in Hagia Sophia in 86 years, brushing aside international criticism and calls for the monument to be kept as a museum. As many as 350,000 took part in the prayers outside the structure.
United Kingdom Latest News, United Kingdom Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Turkish President Erdogan, Kazakh premier discuss regional, global issuesTurkish President Erdogan decries Israel's efforts to escalate regional conflict and calls for urgent ceasefire, proposing stronger cooperation in providing aid to Gaza.
Read more »
Turkish President Erdogan receives Hamas chief in IstanbulAnkara is tirelessly continuing diplomatic efforts to establish an independent State of Palestine, which is the key to permanent regional peace, says Erdogan.
Read more »
Turkey formally opens another former Byzantine-era church as a mosqueTurkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has formally opened a former Byzantine church in Istanbul as a mosque.
Read more »
Turkey formally opens another former Byzantine-era church as a mosqueTurkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has formally opened a former Byzantine church in Istanbul as a mosque.
Read more »
Turkey formally opens another former Byzantine-era church as a mosqueTurkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has formally opened a former Byzantine church in Istanbul as a mosque
Read more »
Turkey formally opens another former Byzantine-era church as a mosqueTurkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has formally opened a former Byzantine church in Istanbul as a mosque
Read more »