There is a worldwide condemnation over Turkey’s decision to convert the Byzantine-era monument Hagia Sophia back into a mosque.
Even Pope Francis on Sunday joined an international chorus of condemnation of Turkey’s decision to convert Istanbul’s iconic Hagia Sophia landmark back into a mosque saying “I think of Hagia Sophia, and I am very saddened,”
Earlier the Russian Orthodox Church expressed dismay at Turkey’s decision to revoke the museum status of Hagia Sophia, accusing it of ignoring voices of millions of Christians.
The European Union‘s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell called the decision “regrettable”.
“The ruling by the Turkish Council of State to overturn one of modern Turkey’s landmark decisions and President Erdogan’s decision to place the monument under the management of the Religious Affairs Presidency is regrettable,” he said in a statement.
In a statement UNESCO said its World Heritage Committee would review Hagia Sophia’s status, saying it was “regrettable that the Turkish decision was not the subject of dialog nor notification beforehand”.
“We are disappointed by the decision by the government of Turkey to change the status of the Hagia Sophia,” Morgan Ortagus, State Department spokesperson, said in a statement.
Vladimir Dzhabarov, deputy head of the foreign affairs committee in the Russian upper house of parliament, called the action “a mistake”
Hypocrisy Exposed
There was a deafening silence across the world when the Israeli municipality in Safed had converted Al-Ahmar Mosque into a bar and events hall in 2019.
The historical mosque was turned to a bar and wedding hall by a firm and its name was changed from Al-Ahmar Mosque to Khan Al-Ahmar.
Al-Ahmar is one of the most historical mosques in the Arab city, which was occupied by the Jewish gangs in 1948, the building was first turned into a Jewish school, then into a centre for Likud’s elections campaigns and then into a clothes warehouse before finally being converted into a nightclub. (Muslim Mirror)