The Hagia Sophia controversy surrounding Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's 2020 decision to reconvert this iconic monument from a museum back into a mosque involves complex layers of history, religion, politics, and international diplomacy.

Understanding the controversy requires examining the building’s historical transformations, the domestic and global responses, and the political motivations attributed to Erdogan's action.

Historically, Hagia Sophia was constructed in 537 CE as a Byzantine cathedral and served as the spiritual center of Eastern Orthodox Christianity for nearly 1,000 years.

After the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople in 1453, it was converted into a mosque under Sultan Mehmed II, symbolizing the rise of Ottoman Islamic power.

In 1934, the secular Turkish Republic under Mustafa Kemal Atatürk transformed Hagia Sophia into a museum to reflect a secular, inclusive national identity honoring both its Christian and Muslim heritage.

This status as a museum also contributed to its designation as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, recognized for its universal cultural, historical, and architectural value.

In July 2020, President Erdogan issued a decree revoking the 1934 museum status, reopening Hagia Sophia as an active mosque.

Erdogan publicly framed this as restoring a glorious Islamic chapter in Turkey’s history and as symbolic of a global revival of Muslim will.

He emphasized the Ottoman and Islamic heritage of the site, often sidelining the Byzantine Christian legacy in his narrative.

This decision resonated strongly with conservative, religious segments of Turkish society, fulfilling long-standing demands from Islamist groups to reclaim the mosque status.

National celebrations marked the initial reopening prayers, attended by Erdogan and allied Muslim leaders from countries such as Qatar and Azerbaijan.

Domestically, the move was viewed as politically motivated.

Secular parties, minority groups, and parts of civil society condemned the decision, seeing it as a symbolic erosion of Turkey’s secularism and a way for Erdogan to consolidate support among Islamist voters following electoral setbacks and economic challenges.

This view was supported by analysts who framed the decision as part of a broader Islamist-nationalist agenda aimed at reviving Ottoman-Islamic identity and diverting attention from socio-economic problems.

The government's later reconversion of another historic Byzantine church, the Chora Church, into a mosque further fueled concerns about heritage preservation and religious pluralism.

Conservative and Islamist constituencies praised Erdogan’s actions, reflecting a cultural and religious revival within Turkey.

Internationally, the decision sparked sharp criticism, especially from Greece, the United States, and Orthodox Christian institutions.

Greece condemned the move as a disregard for the site's Christian heritage and a provocative act in a tense regional context.

The US State Department expressed concerns about religious freedom and minority rights.

UNESCO, the site’s World Heritage custodian, criticized the decision for being taken without proper consultation, warning it could impact the site's universal cultural value and conservation.

Christian religious authorities echoed these concerns, emphasizing the importance of interfaith dialogue and coexistence.

The Greek Orthodox Church viewed the reconversion as a threat to shared cultural heritage, and Pope Francis called for preserving the site's openness to all faiths.

The American Council for the Liberation of Hagia Sophia announced intentions to pursue legal actions to restore Christian worship rights there.

Reactions from the Arab and broader Muslim world were mixed but generally subdued compared to Western criticisms.

Many Muslims welcomed the reconversion as reclaiming a major Islamic monument and a symbol of Muslim pride and resurgence.

Erdogan’s invitation of Muslim leaders from Qatar, Azerbaijan, and other Muslim-majority countries to the reopening prayers symbolized the significance within Islamic history and Turkey’s projection of religious leadership.

At the same time, some Islamist political parties within Turkey had pressured Erdogan for this move, reinforcing the religio-nationalist narrative.

However, some scholars and political observers in the Arab world expressed cautious views, recognizing the political motivations behind the decision and Turkey’s regional ambitions.

For instance, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates presented measured responses, emphasizing respect for cultural heritage and religious coexistence while remaining wary of Turkey's rising influence.

These nuanced perspectives illustrate a balance between religious pride and political calculation in the region's response.

Following the reconversion, practical changes were implemented at Hagia Sophia.

In 2024, Turkey introduced an entrance fee for tourists, ending the free access originally promised when it reopened as a mosque.

The Turkish Tourism Minister justified this as necessary to fund preservation and protect cultural heritage.

Separate entrances were created for worshippers and tourists to minimize disruptions during prayer times.

Despite these changes, the site remains under UNESCO World Heritage protection, although tensions persist over its management and religious inclusivity.

In summary, Erdogan's 2020 decision to revert Hagia Sophia to a mosque is a multifaceted controversy anchored in the complex layers of religious, historical, and political meanings.

Proponents in Turkey view it as restoring national and Islamic identity and responding to popular demand among conservative constituencies.

Critics, both inside and outside Turkey, condemn it as a politically motivated move eroding secularism, multicultural heritage, and international norms of heritage preservation.

The decision has heightened regional and global tensions over symbolic landmarks central to cultural memory and religious coexistence.

For a social media audience in the Arab world, this controversy highlights key themes of identity, power, and heritage negotiation in the Muslim world today, offering rich narrative possibilities from historical significance to geopolitical symbolism and the diversity of contemporary responses.

The Hagia Sophia controversy surrounding Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's 2020 decision to reconvert this iconic monument from a museum back into a mosque involves complex layers of history, religion, politics, and international diplomacy.

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Content: New rules come into force for the visit of Hagia Sophia Mosque in Turkey - Sunrise Gate
Tuesday 16 January 2024 2: 04 PM Cairo Cairo 24 °
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New rules come into effect for visiting Hagia Sophia mosque in Turkey
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Published on: Tuesday 16 January 2024 - 1: 54 PM | Last updated on Tuesday 16 January 2024 - 1: 54 PM
The project for the Hagia Sophia mosque was closest to the heart of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan – but it was also the project that drew international criticism.
In the summer of 2020, Erdogan restored Hagia Sophia to be a mosque after it was originally a church, converted into an Ottoman mosque, converted into a museum.
At the time, Erdogan assured citizens that entry fees would be abolished, adding that the cultural edifice would remain open to everyone – Muslims or non-Muslims alike.
There will be another major change from January 15, with access to the Hagia Sophia restricted and visitors will have to pay fees again.
Turkish Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Arsoy hopes this will improve coexistence between religious and tourist visitors.
Arsoy said recently that tourist visitors are making noise and disrupting calm and prayer.
Until recently, visitors and worshippers were allowed to enter the interior of Hagia Sophia together, with barriers and signs keeping a certain distance between them.
However, from now on, worshippers and tourists will be introduced through different entrances.
Although worshippers can use the same entrances as before, tourists will be guided through an upstairs hallway.
According to Arsoy, tour guides will not be allowed to accompany visitors through the corridors, and earphones will be used instead.
“Our priority there is prayer, ” Arsoy said, noting that the building is a world cultural heritage site and should therefore remain open to all visitors around the world.
Zuleiha Duman, 29, who returned to Istanbul from Germany to see Hagia Sophia after it was converted into a mosque, said she found it taking away.
Welcoming the new rules, she said: “As long as the entrance fee isn ’ t too high, I think it ’ s acceptable. ”
“Why shouldn ’ t Turkey and the government take advantage of this place?
These funds can be channeled to preserve more religious places. ”
Hagia Sophia has been on the UNESCO World Heritage List as part of Istanbul ’ s history since 1985.
Built by Emperor Justinian, Hagia Sophia was the largest place of worship in Christianity for nearly a thousand years, it was the main church during the Byzantine Empire, and from the seventh century, the emperor was crowned inside.
After the Ottomans entered Constantinople (now Istanbul) in 1453, the Hagia Sophia was converted into a mosque.
On the orders of the founder of the Turkish Republic Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the building was converted into a museum in 1934 until the summer of 2020.
Hagia Sophia is as symbolically important to Orthodox Christians around the world as St. Peter ’ s Basilica is to Catholics.
After the building was converted into a mosque, criticism poured in from the Greek Orthodox Church.
The UNESCO Foundation also criticized the decision without consultation.
For Erdogan, turning the place into a mosque was his “childhood dream, ” as he himself said, and pleasing to religious voters.
A few external changes were made at the time, for example, a green carpet was placed above the marble floor.
It seems clear that all these things did not detract from the popularity of this teacher.
According to official statistics, some 13.6 million people visited the Hagia Sophia landmark in 2022, not all of them from Europe.
The number of visitors from Indonesia in particular has risen, Hagia Sophia Imam Binyamin Topoglu told Turkey ’ s Anadolu news agency in 2023.
The amount of the fees has not yet been determined.
Tourism Minister Ersoy says the proceeds will be spent on cultural assets, for excavation or preservation of monuments such as the Hagia Sophia.
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No--In 1934, Ataturk turned it into a museum, making it a major tourist attraction and secular symbol in Turkey.

Why did Erdogan restore Hagia Sophia as a mosque in 2020?

Because he wanted to end its 86-year museum status to return it to its original role as a mosque.

Understanding the controversy requires examining the building’s historical transformations, the domestic and global responses, and the political motivations attributed to Erdogan's action.

Title:

Content: After Hagia Sophia, Turkey converts a second ancient Byzantine church into a mosque

Hundreds of worshippers filled the narrow streets of Istanbul's Fatih district on Friday to hear the sounds of Friday prayers ringing out from the newly inaugurated Kariye Mosque.

Once known as the Chora Church, the site spent the last 79 years as a museum. But it is now the latest structure to be converted back into a mosque by the government of Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, following the conversion of Hagia Sophia in 2020. While viewed as a triumph by many Turkish Muslims, the Greek Orthodox Church has decried it as an "ill-advised decision" that "makes a mockery of the Turkish government's commitment to religious tolerance and religious freedom."

Chora's conversion was announced shortly after Hagia Sophia's, but its opening for prayer was delayed by years of restoration work.

The showing for the first Friday prayers at Kariye was relatively quiet compared to Hagia Sophia, which drew hundreds of thousands who filled the streets with prayer rugs for blocks and blocks away from the building. By contrast, the crowd on Friday was relatively average for a mosque in one of Istanbul's more religiously conservative neighborhoods, where Friday worshippers frequently spill out onto the streets.

Both the Chora Church and Hagia Sophia are 4th-century Byzantine constructions. They spent nearly a millennium as Christian holy sites before being converted to mosques by the Ottomans after their conquest of Constantinople in the 15th century. Despite their conversions, they remained revered by Orthodox Christians. After the founding of a secular Turkish Republic in the early 20th century, the decision was made for both to be neither mosque nor church but simply museums.

"Both Hagia Sophia and Chora embodied Byzantine and Ottoman pasts, and they became symbols of co-existence and multi-faith living practices. Their conversion fundamentally implies a hierarchy, prioritizing the Islamic past over all other layers, Greek Orthodox, Armenian, Jewish, Syriac, et al," Dr. Özgür Kaymak, a lecturer and researcher on minority rights at Istanbul's MEF University, told Religion News Service in an email.

Rededicating the sites as mosques is more than just a status change. According to Islamic tradition, artwork of human figures are forbidden in places of prayer, while in Orthodox Churches, icons of Christ, saints and other biblical figures are a defining feature.

In Hagia Sophia, the mosaics of Jesus and Mary have been covered with curtains since the conversion. While Erdoğan promised Hagia Sophia would remain fully accessible and free to all visitors, Turkey reneged on that earlier this year, reimposing an entrance fee on tourists and relegating them to the upper level, while the main floor is exclusive to Muslim worshippers.

Observers have also criticized the Turkish Directorate of Religion's caretaking of the site, noting damage that did not exist when it was under the purview of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

Though Chora is significantly smaller than Hagia Sophia, it is home to some of the best-preserved examples of late-Byzantine art, including mosaics, icons and frescoes, and is considered a UNESCO World Heritage site.

"For us it's a very important place because it remembers our culture and our traditions here," Father Evangelos Markantonis, an Orthodox priest who was leading a group of theology students to Chora on Friday, told Religion News Service.

"Though we cannot venerate as Orthodox Christians, we have to try to find things we can be united on. Only with dialogue and good deeds can we continue our lives," Markantonis, who is also a professor at the University of Athens, said when asked about the controversy.

Erdoğan had long refused calls from his right to convert churches like Hagia Sophia and Chora, telling supporters in 2018 to fill the nearby Sultan Ahmet Mosque (also known in English as the Blue Mosque) before they talked about needing to pray in Hagia Sophia.

Nonetheless, he made an about-turn in 2020.

"My dear nation, the conquest of Istanbul and the conversion of the Hagia Sophia into a Mosque are among the most glorious chapters in Turkish history," Erdoğan said at the time in a speech inaugurating the Hagia Sophia as a mosque.

"This is the most honorable day that Islam has been looking forward to, Greek Constantinople has become Turkish Istanbul," he added, quoting the Turkish poet Nazim Hikmet.

"The resurrection of Hagia Sophia heralds the liberation of the al-Aqsa Mosque. The resurrection of Hagia Sophia is the footsteps of the will of Muslims across the world to come out of the interregnum," Erdoğan said in his concluding remarks.

Chora's opening as the Kariye Mosque comes just weeks after Erdoğan's Justice and Development Party (AKP) suffered its largest electoral defeat in two decades during Turkey's nationwide municipal elections.

"The recent conversion of Chora into a mosque may be due to Erdoğan's many problems, including his geopolitical power politics, his appeal to religio-nationalism to revive his electoral popularity after the March elections or his tactic to divert attention from Turkey's economic downturn," Kaymak said.

Many analysts have attributed the loss to AKP bleeding votes to the more Islamist-leaning New Welfare Party, which has pressured Erdogan over his response to the Israel-Hamas war and humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip.

Muslim worshippers at the mosque on Friday said they viewed its rededication as an Islamic site to be a national win for Turkey.

"This mosque is one of the symbols of the Conquest. We are proud and happy. There are very beautiful frescoes inside. They were also nicely renovated before they were closed. May it be good for our country and our nation," a bystander, Ahmet Öteyüzoğlu, told Turkish media.

"Thank God for these days. Not everyone has the opportunity in their lifetime," another bystander named Mehmet Çelik told the Turkish news service Anadolu Agency, in reference to having been able to pray at both the rededicated Hagia Sophia and Kariye Mosques.

However, Greece, the U.S. State Department and Orthodox Christian institutions worldwide have all criticized the decision to revert the structure into a mosque.

"I want to publicly express my intense dissatisfaction, interpreting the feelings of all Greek women and men, for the completely unnecessary conversion of a historic Byzantine temple, the Monastery of Chora, into a mosque. It is, I believe, an action that offends the rich history of Istanbul itself as a crossroads of cultures," Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said shortly before leaving for Turkey for a planned meeting with Erdogan.

"We encourage the Turkish government to preserve and ensure access to sites and buildings that have hosted different religious communities in a way that respects their diverse histories," a State Department spokesperson said in response to questions from Greek media.

"The Turkish government's appropriation of both as the property of one faith group not only constitutes yet another sign of that government's contempt for Turkey's rich Orthodox Christian heritage but further imperils the religious freedom of the Ecumenical Patriarchate and the remaining Christians of that land," the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate said in a statement.

© Religion News Service

Historically, Hagia Sophia was constructed in 537 CE as a Byzantine cathedral and served as the spiritual center of Eastern Orthodox Christianity for nearly 1,000 years.

No--In 1934, Ataturk turned it into a museum, making it a major tourist attraction and secular symbol in Turkey.

When was Hagia Sophia built and under whose rule?

Why is Hagia Sophia considered one of the greatest buildings in history?

Served as the central church of Byzantine Christianity,

After the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople in 1453, it was converted into a mosque under Sultan Mehmed II, symbolizing the rise of Ottoman Islamic power.

Title:

Content: >
December 9, 2021

Christian leaders look forward to Turkey's new law on religious foundations

This is an issue of vital importance for local Christian communities whose places of worship are entrusted to and managed by their governing bodies

Religious minorities in Turkey are looking forward to the increasingly Islamo-nationalist government making good its promise of outreach to non-Muslims by giving them freedom to establish and run their religious and social institutions.

The Turkish government is preparing to issue a new regulation on the administrative management of foundations linked to non-Muslim faith communities, which have been paralyzed for years by a legislative impasse that blocks the renewal of their governing bodies.

This is an issue of vital importance for local Christian communities such as Armenians and Assyrians, whose places of worship – many of them historic --, other real estate and public institutions are entrusted to and managed by foundations.

Burhan Ersoy, head of the state-run Directorate of the Foundations, has confirmed that the plan for the drafting of a new regulation concerning the elections for the assignment of offices within the foundations has come into being, Fides reported.

The draft of the text has been drawn up, taking into account requests and proposals from the various minority communities, and it is expected that the new rules, after obtaining government approval, would be implemented by April 2022.

The previous electoral regulation for the top management of foundations had been suspended in 2013, after the government chose to establish new procedures to make the management of real estate more functional and transparent.

This led to some confusion with representatives of the various minority communities unable to come to a consensus to either accept or reject the new electoral rules, Ersoy said.

The Syrian Orthodox Christian Süleyman Can Ustabaşı, current representative of the non-Muslim Foundations within the Assembly of Foundations, has said that the structure of foundations and their membership profiles had changed over time.

The Turkish government already had consultations with the representatives of religious minorities to resolve the dispute over board elections for their foundations.

But Ustabaşı now urges Turkish authorities to carry out another consultation with representatives of minority communities before the new text is to be implemented in 2022.

The legal status of the Foundations is still based on the Peace Treaty of Lausanne, signed in 1923 by Turkey and the Entente powers (British Empire, France and Russian Empire) victorious from the First World War.

The treaty guaranteed equality before the laws and the freedom to promote and manage "religious and social institutions" for non-Muslim communities in Turkey.

However, the state had seized properties run by these foundations and had to contend with litigation as these foundations claimed the rights guaranteed by the Treaty of Lausanne.

Also, starting from 1936, legislative provisions had allowed foundations of non-Muslim communities to acquire new properties. But in 1974, this guarantee was canceled and the state begun seizing assets acquired by these foundations.

Between 2013 and 2018 about 1,084 properties were returned to the foundations linked to non-Muslim communities, and 20 places of worship restored and given back to the foundations, according to official data.

Greek Orthodox Laki Vingas, in a speech published by the Armenian-Turkish newspaper Agos, said that the legislative deadlock on the question of the regulation of the foundations has had a negative effect on the life of the different ecclesial communities.

The block in the processes of renewal of the governing bodies of foundations had led to the expulsion of young people from the institutions linked to their communities, and also that many voluntary activities were "unfortunately interrupted".

Non-Muslim places of worship

Within the general Assembly of the Turkish Foundations are some 167 minority foundations. The Turkish Greek community has 77, the highest number of foundations. The Armenian community has 54 and the Jewish community has 19 foundations.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan after a cabinet meeting held on October 25 announced that authorities had put on the agenda the question of the elections of the directorates of the foundations linked to religious minorities.

He also spoke of fundamental tools for the management of assets and resources destined for non-Muslim places of worship.

The issue of the foundations come at a time when Turkish authorities have expelled more and more Protestant Christians -- foreigners and Turkish converts-- on grounds they constitute a "threat to national security".

Turkey had also recently transformed museums into mosques, such as the Hagia Sophia and the Church of the Holy Saviour in Chora.

Both churches had been turned into museums after the end of the Ottoman Empire and the establishment of modern Turkey.

The Church of the Holy Saviour in Chora was built by the Byzantines in the 5th century. The Ottomans then turned it into a mosque after they captured Constantinople in 1453. And it remained a Muslim worship space until the end of the Second World War when it was transformed into a museum.

The same happened to the Hagia Sophia Museum in Iznik, and the high-profile reconversion of the Hagia Sophia Museum, Istanbul's most identifiable monument.

Many observers believe that President Erdogan, weakened internally by a bad economy and a lack of political perspective, is compensating with erasing part of the country's multiculturalism, aimed at shoring up the ranks of his Islamo-nationalist base.

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How did Hagia Sophia become important for Muslims?

Sultan Mehmed II converted Hagia Sophia into a mosque,making it a key religious site for Muslims for centuries.

No--In 1934, Ataturk turned it into a museum, making it a major tourist attraction and secular symbol in Turkey.

In 1934, the secular Turkish Republic under Mustafa Kemal Atatürk transformed Hagia Sophia into a museum to reflect a secular, inclusive national identity honoring both its Christian and Muslim heritage.

Title:

Content: Turkey’s iconic Hagia Sophia mosque to charge $28 entry fee for tourists

Published: Updated:
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Turkey’s Hagia Sophia mosque began charging tourists nearly $28 on Monday for entrance to the landmark site.

The UNESCO World Heritage site, renowned for its blue-tiled interior, will no longer allow free admission to foreigners, the Turkish tourism ministry announced.

For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.

The former museum-turned mosque has a new entrance in front of the Topkapi Palace Museum open for tourists.

Tunnel entrance at Turkey's Hagia Sophia. (File photo)

The Hagia Sophia was a museum space from 1934 until 2020 when Turkey decided to change it to a mosque. Various historical reports say the mosque with byzantine architecture was an Orthodox cathedral decades ago.

“With the new application that will start on January 15 at the Hagia Sophia Mosque, tourists will be able to visit the mosque without disturbing the prayer environment,” the ministry said in a statement.

The entrance to the mosque will be “provided in a controlled manner through the tunnel and entrance ramp where visitors will be transported to the gallery floor and exited via the ramp in the northeast direction,” the statement said.

“Tourists who come to the gallery section will be able to see the sanctuary floor of the mosque and the Ottoman Period annexes, pass through the heaven-hell gate, and examine the Byzantine Period mosaics in this section,” it added.

Security cameras, fire detection and emergency announcement systems were reportedly installed in the mosque along the tour route. Cleaning and conservation work on the marble coverings and wooden railings on the gallery floor of the mosque was also carried out by restorers and conservators.

Visitors will also have access to a headset guide with QR codes where information on the sight is available in 23 languages.

People visit the Hagia Sophia, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, in Istanbul, Turkey, July 10, 2020. (Reuters)

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No--In 1934, Ataturk turned it into a museum, making it a major tourist attraction and secular symbol in Turkey.

This status as a museum also contributed to its designation as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, recognized for its universal cultural, historical, and architectural value.

No--In 1934, Ataturk turned it into a museum, making it a major tourist attraction and secular symbol in Turkey.

In July 2020, President Erdogan issued a decree revoking the 1934 museum status, reopening Hagia Sophia as an active mosque.

Title:

Content: Turkey officially opens the Byzantine church and museum "Khora" as a mosque (PHOTOS)
World News
"Kari Mosque" in the Museum and Monastery of "Khora"
Copy Link https: / / www.rt.com / xhpk
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday officially opened the Kari Mosque in Istanbul ’ s Byzantine Museum and Monastery of Khora, four years after the church dedicated a mosque to Muslims.
On Monday, Erdogan oversaw the official remote opening of the Khora mosque and a number of restored sites from the conference hall of his residence in Ankara.
Erdogan said during the opening ceremony, which was broadcast on Turkish television, "May it be a good start."
One of the first worshipers at the mosque told Anadolu Agency: “I have been waiting for its opening for four years, and I have been honored to pray in such a place. ”
Anadolu quoted another serum as saying: “Thank God for showing us these days, I hope we come here from time to time and do our prayers. ”
The site near the walls of the old city of Istanbul is famous for its fine mosaics and frescoes.
The church dates back to the 4th century, although the edifice took its present form during the 11th and 12th centuries.
Greece has criticized the Turkish government ’ s decision to return it to use as a mosque, accusing Ankara of “personal insult ” to another World Heritage site, saying the decisions to turn Hagia Sophia and Khora back into mosques are steps aimed at strengthening the support base of conservatives and the religious trend of Erdogan ’ s ruling party amid an economic downturn.
The museum was built "Khora" monastery, in 534, the building was converted into "Kari Mosque" at the beginning of the 16th century, it was used as a mosque for more than four centuries and was converted into a museum in 1945 by a Turkish ministerial decision.
In August 2020, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan signed a decree on the conversion of the Hagia Sophia Cathedral and the Kari Museum, known as a “bottomless church ” in Turkish, into mosques.
The conversion of the two churches into mosques was praised by Muslims, but drew criticism from Greece and other countries that urged Turkey to protect important Byzantine monuments, both of which have been listed as World Heritage Sites by the United Nations.
Source: A B
Agree.
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No--In 1934, Ataturk turned it into a museum, making it a major tourist attraction and secular symbol in Turkey.

Why did Erdogan restore Hagia Sophia as a mosque in 2020?

Because he wanted to end its 86-year museum status to return it to its original role as a mosque.

Erdogan publicly framed this as restoring a glorious Islamic chapter in Turkey’s history and as symbolic of a global revival of Muslim will.

How did Muslims and Orthodox Christians react to the reconversion?

What political motivations influenced Erdogan's decision to reconvert Hagia Sophia?

Erdogan's decision was influenced by Turkey's Islamic resurgence.

He emphasized the Ottoman and Islamic heritage of the site, often sidelining the Byzantine Christian legacy in his narrative.

What political motivations influenced Erdogan's decision to reconvert Hagia Sophia?

Erdogan's decision was influenced by Turkey's Islamic resurgence.

This decision resonated strongly with conservative, religious segments of Turkish society, fulfilling long-standing demands from Islamist groups to reclaim the mosque status.

Title:

Content: On the 564 anniversary of the conquest of Constantinople by the Ottomans, the American Council for the Liberation of Hagia Sophia (CALHSC) called for the Hagia Sophia Museum to return to its original significance, that is, it should once again hear Christian prayers and Christian services.
Such a statement, reports the Austrian Catholic news agency KATHPRESS, was made by the president of CALHSC, an American politician of Greek origin Chris Spirou.
According to the agency, he has already appealed to the Turkish government with a proposal to start negotiations on this issue.
As a first step, it is proposed to allow regular liturgical services while maintaining the status of Hagia Sophia as a museum.
All Christians still perceive the cathedral as a shrine, Spira argues, so if the Turkish authorities raise the issue of returning it to the status of a cult place of worship, Ankara should hear the voices of Christians, not just Muslims.
In the event that the Turkish leadership does not go to negotiations, the “American Council for the Liberation of Hagia Sophia ” is going to file a lawsuit in the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.
Erhan Elaldı – Anadolu Agency
The 564th anniversary of the conquest of Constantinople was celebrated by the Hagia Sophia as a museum.
What is the 565th anniversary?
This is not the first time Spirou has taken such an initiative.
His organization, registered in 2005, but not particularly famous, has already announced its intention to celebrate the liturgy in the cathedral museum.
The Turkish government then called the words of the American politician a provocation, and he himself was denied entry to the country.
But a lot of things are changing in the Middle East, Europe and the United States today.
Ankara is no longer the “best ally ” it used to be, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is moving further and further away from the familiar image of the head of state for Western colleagues, with whom you can deal.
Washington even under the previous administration with a squeak, but went on to recognize the importance of protecting Christian minorities in the Middle East, and the current Trump administration puts this at the forefront.
Cracks went on the sarcophagus, which until now protected the secular museum of Hagia Sophia from degeneration into a religious object.
And not at all in the church, in the mosque, which Hagia Sophia became after the conquest by the Ottomans of the capital of the Orthodox Byzantine Empire in May 1453.
The intensification of this process is associated today with the rebirth of Erdogan himself, although it is difficult to be completely sure that there is no political conjuncture here, which, as you know, is changeable.
Alexxx1979
View of St. Sophia Cathedral
Recall that in early April this year, a number of Turkish newspapers reported that the President was going on Friday, April 14, together with the leadership of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and religious leaders of Istanbul to visit the Hagia Sophia Museum to pray in it as Muslims.
The timing of Muslim prayer in the former church was not accidental.
On April 14 this year was Holy Friday, which is dedicated to the memory of the condemnation to death, the suffering of the cross and the death of Jesus Christ, as well as the removal of His body from the cross and burial.
Considering also that Easter is now the Orthodox and Catholics coincided, the message was sent powerful and significant.
All this seemed to be a continuation of playing the religious card on the eve of the referendum on April 16, which decided whether Turkey should be a parliamentary or presidential republic.
On April 18, it became clear that Erdogan had won.
But I lost at the same time.
In September 2015, during the parliamentary elections, the ruling party received 51% of the vote, and the nationalist Nationalist Action Party received about 20%.
When the AKP merged with the nationalists in the course of lobbying for constitutional amendments, it expected that the addition of 50% and 20% would give 70% or more in the referendum.
Only 51% of Turks supported the union of the two parties.
In this regard, many Turkish experts, analyzing the current situation, pointed out that the Justice and Development Party, having entered into an alliance with the Nationalist Action Party, made a strategic mistake, creating not only the impression of a synthesis of “soft Islamism ” with nationalists, but also began to cultivate a hybrid ideology of neo-Ottomanism, which was not supported by almost half of the citizens of Turkey..
However, there is another thing – the conservative and religious inner Anatolia, whose votes went to Erdogan, began to realize that from now on she has the right to present her demands to him.
This directly affects Saint Sophia.
An observer for the Turkish newspaper Hurriyet Daily News points out in this regard that on the eve of the 564 anniversary of the conquest of Constantinople, the space around the Hagia Sophia Museum is again filled, but not by tourists, but by members of the Anatolian Youth Association (AGD), whose motto is the words of the late Islamist politician, former Prime Minister of Turkey Necmettin Erbakan: “Life is faith and jihad ”.
These passionately believing people are actively opposed to everything that testifies to the presence of the non-Muslim faith in Turkish society.
And not just Santa Claus for the New Year.
For the past three years, they have focused on making Hagia Sophia “free from shackles ” and converted into a mosque.
Erdogan is slow.
However, the impatient members of the AGD are even more demanding for action this year.
After the referendum, Turkish politics entered a difficult phase of implementing the new constitution, and after May 29, the question arises whether these loud signals from Anatolia will now be ignored.
The Turkish president himself, during a speech in the ancient capital during the celebration of the conquest of Constantinople, according to the government news agency Anadolu, emphasized that “Istanbul, which since its foundation has been the capital of different states and cultures, has become a center of peaceful coexistence and tolerance during the just rule of Sultan Mehmed Fatih [also known as Mehmed the Conqueror]. ”
This part of Erdogan ’ s rhetoric looks tolerant.
But what will follow?
If suddenly the Turkish president decided to allow the Hagia Sophia Museum to serve the liturgy, then this, at least, made us think about the prospects of a possible return of Turkey to the path of improving relations with the Christian world, in particular with the European Union, which Erdogan has repeatedly sarcastic called “the Christian club ”.
However, this will require from the president not only personal courage, but also reliance on new political and social forces, the search for new allies in the country and abroad.
The problem is that even in Turkey itself, an opinion is beginning to take shape that Erdogan is becoming a hostage of internal Anatolia.
This means that the Hagia Sophia Museum, under pressure from this part of the country and society, would rather become a mosque than a church.

How did Muslims and Orthodox Christians react to the reconversion?

What kind of domestic reaction did Erdogan's reconversion of Hagia Sophia receive?

What political motivations influenced Erdogan's decision to reconvert Hagia Sophia?

Erdogan's decision was influenced by Turkey's Islamic resurgence.

The decision aimed to rally anti-Kemalist voters.

Why did Erdogan restore Hagia Sophia as a mosque in 2020?

Because he wanted to end its 86-year museum status to return it to its original role as a mosque.

National celebrations marked the initial reopening prayers, attended by Erdogan and allied Muslim leaders from countries such as Qatar and Azerbaijan.

Title:

Content: Erdogan invited the leaders of Muslim states to the first prayer in Hagia Sophia
13: 26 22 July Kiev, Ukraine
According to the plan, on July 24, the first prayer will be held in Hagia Sophia in Turkey, after it was decided to convert the building of the Orthodox church into a mosque.
The leaders of many Muslim countries are invited to take part in it.
Erdogan ’ s invitation came from Qatar and Azerbaijan.
The remaining heads of state have not yet responded to the Turkish president.
Remind me!
The Turkish government decided to change the status of the architectural monument and the Orthodox Church of St. Sophia and convert the room into a mosque.
The Pope said that this situation causes him grief.
The Patriarch of Ecumenical and Constantinople, who recently received a great number of churches on the territory of Ukraine, and did not demand the transfer of the museum to the Diocese of Constantinople in a timely manner, said that the creation of a mosque in the museum building can be negatively met in the Orthodox world.
It is expected that the first prayer in the new mosque will be attended by about 1000-1500 people.
All quarantine conditions will be met, participants in prayer will be given masks, and disinfectants will be placed everywhere in the cathedral so that people can treat their hands and their prayer mats.
During the prayer, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will also be present in the cathedral, along with Turkish ministers, leaders of the ruling Justice and Development Party.
As previously reported, all the frescoes and mosaics at the time of prayer will be covered with curtains.
On July 10, a Turkish court ruled that the decision to convert the mosque into a museum in 1934 was illegal.
Erdogan immediately signed a decree on assigning Hagia Sophia the status of a mosque.
The move has sparked international criticism and concern, including from Greece, the United States and Russia, as well as UNESCO and Pope Francis.
Turkey insists that the status of the architectural monument is its internal affair.

How did Muslims and Orthodox Christians react to the reconversion?

What kind of domestic reaction did Erdogan's reconversion of Hagia Sophia receive?

Domestically, the move was viewed as politically motivated.

What political motivations influenced Erdogan's decision to reconvert Hagia Sophia?

The decision aimed to rally anti-Kemalist voters.

Secular parties, minority groups, and parts of civil society condemned the decision, seeing it as a symbolic erosion of Turkey’s secularism and a way for Erdogan to consolidate support among Islamist voters following electoral setbacks and economic challenges.

What political motivations influenced Erdogan's decision to reconvert Hagia Sophia?

Erdogan's decision was influenced by Turkey's Islamic resurgence.

The decision aimed to rally anti-Kemalist voters.

This view was supported by analysts who framed the decision as part of a broader Islamist-nationalist agenda aimed at reviving Ottoman-Islamic identity and diverting attention from socio-economic problems.

What kind of domestic reaction did Erdogan's reconversion of Hagia Sophia receive?

What political motivations influenced Erdogan's decision to reconvert Hagia Sophia?

Erdogan's decision was influenced by Turkey's Islamic resurgence.

The government's later reconversion of another historic Byzantine church, the Chora Church, into a mosque further fueled concerns about heritage preservation and religious pluralism.

Conservative and Islamist constituencies praised Erdogan’s actions, reflecting a cultural and religious revival within Turkey.

How did Muslims and Orthodox Christians react to the reconversion?

What kind of domestic reaction did Erdogan's reconversion of Hagia Sophia receive?

What political motivations influenced Erdogan's decision to reconvert Hagia Sophia?

Erdogan's decision was influenced by Turkey's Islamic resurgence.

Internationally, the decision sparked sharp criticism, especially from Greece, the United States, and Orthodox Christian institutions.

How did Muslims and Orthodox Christians react to the reconversion?

Who was angered by the reconversion of Hagia Sophia in July 2020?

Greece condemned the move as a disregard for the site's Christian heritage and a provocative act in a tense regional context.

How did Muslims and Orthodox Christians react to the reconversion?

Who was angered by the reconversion of Hagia Sophia in July 2020?

The US State Department expressed concerns about religious freedom and minority rights.

UNESCO, the site’s World Heritage custodian, criticized the decision for being taken without proper consultation, warning it could impact the site's universal cultural value and conservation.

What was UNESCO's main complaint about the reconversion?

Christian religious authorities echoed these concerns, emphasizing the importance of interfaith dialogue and coexistence.

The Greek Orthodox Church viewed the reconversion as a threat to shared cultural heritage, and Pope Francis called for preserving the site's openness to all faiths.

How did Muslims and Orthodox Christians react to the reconversion?

Who was angered by the reconversion of Hagia Sophia in July 2020?

The American Council for the Liberation of Hagia Sophia announced intentions to pursue legal actions to restore Christian worship rights there.

Title:

Content: Hagia Sophia must once again become a place of Christian worship, demands the American Council for the Liberation of Hagia Sophia.
For a start, according to the organization, it is possible to allow liturgies in Hagia Sophia, preserving its museum status.
Although Christians still perceive this cathedral captured together with Constantinople in 1453 as one of the most important shrines.
In case of refusal, the “Council ” intends to appeal to the ECHR.
However, the situation around Hagia Sophia is much more complicated; the observer of IA REGNUM Stanislav Stremidlovsky analyzes the recent events around the former main temple of Byzantium.
Erhan Elaldı – Anadolu Agency
The 564th anniversary of the conquest of Constantinople was celebrated by the Hagia Sophia as a museum.
What is the 565th anniversary?
The head of the “Council ”, American politician Chris Spirou, has already been declared a provocateur by the Turkish authorities.
Today, when Erdogan is increasingly moving away from “his overseas partners ” at least in terms of the desired image of the president, and the new owner of the White House pays much more attention to Middle Eastern Christians than Obama, the situation is clearly changing.
There are already hints that Hagia Sophia from the museum will become a mosque.
At the same time, Erdogan ’ s victory in the last referendum made the president a debtor of domestic Anatolia (at least she believes so), who gave him their votes.
The Anatolian Youth Association strongly opposes any manifestations of non-Muslim faith in Turkish society.
For three years now, they have been trying to make Hagia Sophia a mosque.
And although Erdogan is in no hurry to meet, the Association expects decisive measures from him.
Where the Turkish president is inclined and what Hagia Sophia, cathedral or mosque can become, read here: Internal Anatolia, who supported Erdogan, demands to make Hagia Sophia a mosque
Read other articles by Stanislav Stremidlovsky on the relationship of world religions.

Reactions from the Arab and broader Muslim world were mixed but generally subdued compared to Western criticisms.

Title:

Content: Earthquakes and rampant inflation: Why did Erdogan win again?
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Source: Hong Kong 01
Author: Liu Yanting
On May 28, Turkey held the second round of the presidential election.
Although Turkey's Supreme Electoral Council is not expected to announce the official results until June 1, according to preliminary election statistics, with 99.59% of the votes cast, the incumbent President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has 51.91% of the votes, defeating his opponent Kemal Kılçdaroğlu with 48.09% of the votes. Determine the rate of re-election.
This election has caused global concern.
First, people are curious about whether there will be a regime change in Turkey, changing its fierce cross-border diplomatic style.
Looking back over the past two years, since the outbreak of the Russian-Ukrainian war in 2022, Turkey has repeatedly played a fierce swing beyond the size of medium-sized countries, including facilitating the Russian-Ukrainian foreign ministers' talks in March 2022, blocking Finland and Sweden's accession to NATO in May, and announcing the "green light" in June, leading Russia to sign the Black Sea Food Agreement in July, and negotiating energy cooperation with Russia at the CICA summit in October. For the first time since the start of the war, senior officials have talked about launching a new round of military action in Syria, implying that it may threaten Russia ’ s and Iran ’ s geopolitical interests.
In between, the outside world is surprised by Erdoğan ’ s active actions, and also uncertain about Turkey ’ s opportunistic diplomatic style.
Second, Erdogan suffered two major shocks before the election, causing the outside world to generally not optimistic about his re-election, one is in 2022 for months to break through 80% of the serious inflation, the second is the earthquake disaster.
Among them, Turkey ’ s high inflation is the sequela of the 2018 economic crisis. The deep reason is that Turkey ’ s long-term economic overheating and political interest rate cuts have caused a linked financial storm after the Federal Reserve raised interest rates in Turkey. He lost power in big cities such as Istanbul and Ankara.
And the earthquake will also affect voters' support for Erdogan.
On February 6, 2023, a 7.8-magnitude earthquake occurred in southeastern Turkey, killing nearly 50,000 people, and economic losses are even more incalculable.
After the disaster Erdoğan once faced criticism, public opinion criticized its failure to improve the phenomenon of uneven development and urban poverty, resulting in old buildings with low earthquake resistance being vulnerable to a strong earthquake, and fragile buildings are often difficult to get away from the collusion of officials and businessmen, cutting corners, the ruling Erdoğan and the positive development party are to blame.
However, from the results of this election, although the gap between the two people is less than 5%, but Krechidaloğlu is finally a step away from the door, showing that whether it is high inflation or an earthquake, can not prevent Erdogan from being re-elected.
In addition to the lack of integration of Turkish opposition forces, Erdogan ’ s success in mobilizing the new situation of “Turkey ’ s rise ” is also key.
The opposition is not well integrated.
First of all, although the polls of the Republican People's Party (CHP) party leader Krechidar Oulu once exceeded Erdoğan ’ s, making many foreign media boldly predict that Turkey will soon change, but focusing on the current state of Turkish politics, Erdoğan ’ s positive party is the strongest force, and the opposition ’ s long-term mountainous and independent government has not only offset the integration efforts to challenge Erdoğan, but also to some extent.
Looking at the interaction of Turkish opposition parties in recent years, there have been obvious signs of integration until the 2017 constitutional referendum.
At that time, Erdoğan greatly expanded the presidential power and removed the obstacles to re-election in the system, causing a collective panic among the opposition forces. The four major opposition parties, the Republican People's Party (İYü), the Good Party (İYü), the Happiness Party (SP) and the Democratic Party (DP), jointly formed the "State Union" (Millet İttifakı), advocating the restoration of the parliamentary system and abolition of the executive presidential system, hoping to curb the positive party and Erdoğan. Together with the Democratic and Progressive Party (DEVA), they formed the "Six Party Round Table" (Altılı Masa), which is seeking to jointly launch a presidential candidate representing the opposition forces and compete with Erdogan in 2023.
After all, Erdogan was the president at the time, with political resources such as the media and the judiciary, enough to crack down on various opposition forces, such as Ekrem İmamoğlu, the mayor of Istanbul from the Republican People ’ s Party, who was originally highly polled and regarded as a star of tomorrow enough to end Erdoğan ’ s 20 years in power, was sentenced to more than two years in prison in December 2022 for “suspected insult to the Supreme Electoral Council. ” He lost the right to run for president.
After Imam Oulu was forced out, the "six-party round table" did not immediately integrate new candidates, but entangled in ideological scuffles, political spoils distribution, until March 2023, it was determined to nominate CHP party leader Krechidar Oulu, but this nomination was initially not supported by the good party, the latter also threatened to withdraw from the "six-party round table".
After many days of consultations and political exchanges, Krechdarolu agreed to have Ankara Mayor Mansur Yavaş and Imam Oulu as vice presidents, and the good party agreed to stay at the "six-party round table" and support the nomination of Krechdarolu for election.
In fact, from the point of view of the composition of the structure, the only ideology that can unite the "six-party round table" is against Erdogan.
Because the Republican People's Party with the most seats is the centre-left pro-European secularism party, the Happiness Party is a Eurosceptic conservative party with Islamism, the Democratic Party is a centre-right nationalist party, the Democratic and Progressive Party is a centre-right pro-European party, the Future Party is a right-wing pro-European party, and the Good Party is a centre-right nationalist party.
In short, the parties have a combination of ideologies that straddle Islamism and secularism, and basically if Erdoğan and the AKP had not been in power for too long, the parties would have no incentive to integrate.
However, even if it is reluctantly integrated, the "six-party round table" is still divided, otherwise it will not be until two months before the election to determine the nomination of candidates; and after the confirmation of the presidential candidate, the "six-party round table" broke out in a new civil war on the list of parliamentary candidates, all parties want to strive for more security seats distribution, resulting in the continued difficulty of the list.
All these things are quite chilling in the eyes of Turkish voters: Erdoğan may have a monopoly on power and love the position of power, but the opposition forces are also only interested in the division of territory and political division of spoils, and have no intention of changing Turkey's development predicament.
Under the balance of the two, or some voters who are tired of Erdoğan, after going through a thousand turns of heart, they chose to continue to vote for the positive party and Erdoğan, instead of supporting the opposition forces whose governing ability is unknown and whose positions are mixed, resulting in the eventual defeat of Krechdar Olu by a small margin.
How Erdoğan mobilised the "rise of Turkey"
In addition to the weak integration of opposition forces and the failure to gather enough political energy, Erdoğan and the Positive Development Party are still able to gather support and call for votes under the impact of high inflation and earthquake disasters, which is also the key to the defeat of Krechdar Olu.
According to the results of the poll, voters in large cities whose wealth has been severely eroded by high inflation supported Krechdarolu in the election, including the top three cities of Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir and Adana, the fifth largest city; however, Bursa, the sixth largest city of Gaziantep, and the seventh largest city of Konya. (Konya) is still supporting Erdoğan, and Gaziantep is still the hardest hit area of the 2023 earthquake, but voters still vote for the current president who has been denounced by public opinion, and it is clear that Erdoğan still has a certain degree of political energy.
Looking at this source of energy, it is obvious that it is not all the economic achievements that have been downhill.
Looking back at Erdoğan ’ s path to power, he experienced high economic growth in Turkey during his term of office, which can escort him to power.
From 2008 to 2013, developed markets such as the United States, Europe and Japan adopted a number of rounds of quantitative easing policies, international "hot money" poured into emerging markets including Turkey, stimulating the latter's economic growth. Erdogan took advantage of the momentum to promote easy credit, ask the central bank to continue to cut interest rates, and promote large-scale infrastructure projects. On the altar alone, no one can resist.
However, after the US Federal Reserve released a possible interest rate hike in 2013, foreign investment was greatly withdrawn, and emerging market currencies, including the lira, began to depreciate, and Turkey ’ s economic growth continued to slow down. And...
In the process of coping with the crisis, Erdoğan obviously wants to sacrifice prices and preserve economic growth, so he used extreme economic means and insisted on cutting interest rates in the face of high inflation.
The result, while maintaining economic growth to a certain extent, has led to a sharp depreciation of the lira, soaring prices, a near collapse of the bond market, and widespread protests in major cities such as Istanbul.
But looking at Erdoğan ’ s political actions in the past 10 years, it can be seen that he has begun to actively mobilize public support in the military, historical traditions, and diplomatic fields of major powers to fill the “Turkish rise ” narrative under the slowdown in economic growth and make up for his political loss.
As far as the diplomatic tradition after the Cold War is concerned, Turkey is an intermediate power anchored in the Western world and, with its strategic position across Eurasia, moves among different groups of countries.
However, after the outbreak of the Arab Spring in 2010, the outside world saw a more "eastern" and "military power" Turkey: on the Egyptian issue, its support for the Muslim Brotherhood, its involvement in the local political situation; on the battlefield of Syria and Libya, it has successively sent troops to intervene in the civil war there since 2016, and successfully achieved certain results. In the Gulf field, Turkey and Iran have maintained close interaction with Qatar, to a certain extent, prompting the 2017 Qatar severance storm, but because Turkey and Iran insisted on not retreating, the final storm ended with Saudi concessions in 2021, and Turkey successfully maintained its political achievements in the Gulf.
Of course, Turkey's foreign military operations are not all fruitful results.
Taking the Syrian battlefield as an example, Turkey launched four military operations against Syria: the Euphrates Shield from 2016 to 2017, the Olive Branch in 2018, the Peace Spring in 2019 and the Spring Shield in 2020.
Since the "olive branch" operation, the Turkish army has not only attacked the Kurdish forces, but also exchanged fire with the Syrian government forces supported by the Russian side, causing strong dissatisfaction in Moscow.
After many unsuccessful coordination, the Russian army was brazenly engaged with Turkey in 2020, resulting in the scribbled end of the "spring shield", and Turkey can only be forced to obey the Russian-led order in northern Syria.
However, under the propaganda of the Erdogan government, Turkey is not clearly aware that Turkey lost to Russia, but to see the Turkish army fighting in northern Syria in order to fight terrorism, which is very encouraging for nationalists and patriotic people.
In addition, in the historical tradition, Erdogan ’ s most classic action is to announce in July 2020 the abolition of the 1934 cabinet decree, the end of the 86 years of Hagia Sophia ’ s museum years, and the restoration of its mosque status.
Although this has caused many Western countries to criticize, but Erdoğan is not without the basis of public opinion, because in the 2015 capture of Junstenburg memorial ceremony, many Turks have held morning prayers in the museum square, in 2018, the Turkish Islamic Association is publicly applied to hold worship in the museum, although it was finally rejected, but has attracted a lot of public support.
Therefore, Erdogan's decision to "liberate St. Sophia" is aimed at the Islamic resurgence in Turkey in recent years, hoping to draw the support of anti-Kemalist voters.
And in the great power diplomatic field, Turkey's action is not to be said, in addition to the neighboring Central Asia and the Middle East, the Russian-Ukrainian war under various violent swings across Eurasia, are Erdogan's excellent election materials.
Taking the March 2022 Russian-Ukrainian Foreign Minister ’ s talks in Turkey and the landing of the Black Sea Food Agreement in July as an example, Turkish state media vigorously promoted Erdogan ’ s “peacemaker ” role; as for blocking Finland and Sweden from joining NATO, Turkish state media used Erdogan ’ s“ defense of national interests ”, “no fear of offending the West ” and“ combating Kurdish terrorism ”.
Of course, under the burden of economic decline and governance for many years, the narrative situation of mobilizing military, historical traditions and great power diplomacy can play a role in Erdoğan ’ s election, which can only be determined by the election results.
Judging from the results of 51.91% to 48.09%, although the above actions did not create a brilliant victory, they were enough to defeat the opposition forces and guarantee Erdogan another five-year term, which obviously still has some effect.
However, Turkey ’ s high economic growth has ended, and how to buffer Turkey ’ s economic storm and find new solutions outside of “Erdoğan ’ s economics ” are difficult issues that cannot be solved in the short term.
After the election, Erdoğan ’ s challenge continued.
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Many Muslims welcomed the reconversion as reclaiming a major Islamic monument and a symbol of Muslim pride and resurgence.

How did Muslims and Orthodox Christians react to the reconversion?

What kind of domestic reaction did Erdogan's reconversion of Hagia Sophia receive?

What political motivations influenced Erdogan's decision to reconvert Hagia Sophia?

Erdogan's decision was influenced by Turkey's Islamic resurgence.

Why did Erdogan restore Hagia Sophia as a mosque in 2020?

Because he wanted to end its 86-year museum status to return it to its original role as a mosque.

Erdogan’s invitation of Muslim leaders from Qatar, Azerbaijan, and other Muslim-majority countries to the reopening prayers symbolized the significance within Islamic history and Turkey’s projection of religious leadership.

What political motivations influenced Erdogan's decision to reconvert Hagia Sophia?

Erdogan's decision was influenced by Turkey's Islamic resurgence.

At the same time, some Islamist political parties within Turkey had pressured Erdogan for this move, reinforcing the religio-nationalist narrative.

How did Muslims and Orthodox Christians react to the reconversion?

What kind of domestic reaction did Erdogan's reconversion of Hagia Sophia receive?

What political motivations influenced Erdogan's decision to reconvert Hagia Sophia?

Erdogan's decision was influenced by Turkey's Islamic resurgence.

However, some scholars and political observers in the Arab world expressed cautious views, recognizing the political motivations behind the decision and Turkey’s regional ambitions.

What political motivations influenced Erdogan's decision to reconvert Hagia Sophia?

The decision aimed to rally anti-Kemalist voters.

For instance, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates presented measured responses, emphasizing respect for cultural heritage and religious coexistence while remaining wary of Turkey's rising influence.

These nuanced perspectives illustrate a balance between religious pride and political calculation in the region's response.

Following the reconversion, practical changes were implemented at Hagia Sophia.

No--In 1934, Ataturk turned it into a museum, making it a major tourist attraction and secular symbol in Turkey.

In 2024, Turkey introduced an entrance fee for tourists, ending the free access originally promised when it reopened as a mosque.

The Turkish Tourism Minister justified this as necessary to fund preservation and protect cultural heritage.

Separate entrances were created for worshippers and tourists to minimize disruptions during prayer times.

Despite these changes, the site remains under UNESCO World Heritage protection, although tensions persist over its management and religious inclusivity.

In summary, Erdogan's 2020 decision to revert Hagia Sophia to a mosque is a multifaceted controversy anchored in the complex layers of religious, historical, and political meanings.

No--In 1934, Ataturk turned it into a museum, making it a major tourist attraction and secular symbol in Turkey.

What political motivations influenced Erdogan's decision to reconvert Hagia Sophia?

Erdogan's decision was influenced by Turkey's Islamic resurgence.

Why did Erdogan restore Hagia Sophia as a mosque in 2020?

Because he wanted to end its 86-year museum status to return it to its original role as a mosque.

Proponents in Turkey view it as restoring national and Islamic identity and responding to popular demand among conservative constituencies.

How did Muslims and Orthodox Christians react to the reconversion?

What kind of domestic reaction did Erdogan's reconversion of Hagia Sophia receive?

What political motivations influenced Erdogan's decision to reconvert Hagia Sophia?

Erdogan's decision was influenced by Turkey's Islamic resurgence.

The decision aimed to rally anti-Kemalist voters.

Why did Erdogan restore Hagia Sophia as a mosque in 2020?

Because he wanted to end its 86-year museum status to return it to its original role as a mosque.

Critics, both inside and outside Turkey, condemn it as a politically motivated move eroding secularism, multicultural heritage, and international norms of heritage preservation.

What political motivations influenced Erdogan's decision to reconvert Hagia Sophia?

Erdogan's decision was influenced by Turkey's Islamic resurgence.

The decision aimed to rally anti-Kemalist voters.

The decision has heightened regional and global tensions over symbolic landmarks central to cultural memory and religious coexistence.

For a social media audience in the Arab world, this controversy highlights key themes of identity, power, and heritage negotiation in the Muslim world today, offering rich narrative possibilities from historical significance to geopolitical symbolism and the diversity of contemporary responses.


Traditional Indian medicine, particularly Ayurveda, Siddha, and Unani systems, is increasingly integrated with modern healthcare through rigorous research and clinical applications.

Recent studies emphasize the therapeutic potential of key Indian herbs such as turmeric and ginger, noted for their anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and prebiotic effects.

These properties contribute to managing conditions like obesity, cardiovascular diseases, cancer, and gastrointestinal disorders, though more extensive clinical validation remains necessary.

Cutting-edge research exemplifies this integration, such as a large double-blind clinical trial by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and the All India Institute of Ayurveda testing Ashwagandha for long Covid symptoms including fatigue and cognitive dysfunction.

This marks a significant step in validating traditional herbal use through contemporary scientific methods.

India has established major institutions dedicated to advancing traditional medicine through education and research.

Notable among them are the All India Institute of Ayurveda in Goa, the National Institute of Unani Medicine in Ghaziabad, and the National Institute of Homoeopathy in Delhi.

These centers focus on standardizing therapies and promoting evidence-based practices globally.

Moreover, the Indian Ministry of Ayush is launching over 12,500 health and wellness centers to integrate Ayurveda and allied systems into public health frameworks, with programs targeting maternal care, geriatric health, osteoarthritis, and lifestyle diseases.

A landmark initiative is the planned World Health Organization-supported global traditional medicine center in Hyderabad, designed to be a hub for research and validation of India’s indigenous medical systems, facilitating holistic and integrative approaches in global health.

While the potential of Indian herbal medicine is promising, regulatory challenges arise.

Traditional Indian medicine, particularly Ayurveda, Siddha, and Unani systems, is increasingly integrated with modern healthcare through rigorous research and clinical applications.

Title:

Content: you are here: HomeNewsIndia

Govt working towards scientifically integrating traditional and modern medicine: Sonowal

The ministry is working on operationalisation of 12,500 Ayush health and wellness centres through the support of state and Union territory governments under the National Ayush Mission (NAM) by 2023-24, Sonowal said.

September 07, 2023 / 12:48 AM IST

Ayurveda representational image

India's rich heritage of traditional form of medicine has withstood the test of time and the government has been working towards scientifically integrating it with modern medicine, Union Ayush Minister Sarbananda Sonowal said on Wednesday.

The Regional Review meeting of National Ayush Mission was ceremonially inaugurated by him along with his deputy Munjpara Mahendrabhai.

During the meeting, representatives of all participating states and Union territories presented detailed presentations on the state of Ayush and progress of leading Ayush programmes under implementation.

Speaking on the occasion, Sonowal said, "Our rich heritage and potential of traditional form of medicine has withstood the test of time in generations of humanity to live a better, healthier and happier life. We must take full advantage of this generous forms of medicine - be it Ayurveda, Siddha, Unani, Yoga, Naturopathy, Sowa Rigpa, or Homoeopathy."

He also said that under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the government has been working towards scientifically integrating traditional forms of medicine with the modern medicine.

Highlighting the utility of Ayush system of medicine, he further said that it has some robust programmes like Ayurvidya for promotion of healthy lifestyle through Ayush for school children, Supraja for maternal and neonatal intervention, Vayomitra for geriatric issues; prevention and management of Osteoarthritis and other musculo-skeletal disorders, and Ayush mobile medical units.

The ministry is working on operationalisation of 12,500 Ayush health and wellness centres through the support of state and Union territory governments under the National Ayush Mission (NAM) by 2023-24, Sonowal said.

The ministry of Ayush has so far released Rs 719.70 crore to southern states and Union territories - Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Lakshadweep, Puducherry, Tamil Nadu and Telangana - under NAM since 2014-15, he said, adding it has also supported 17 Integrated Ayush hospitals in the southern states and out of that six are operational as reported by them.

Mahendrabhai stressed on the need to emphasise on outcomes as a more meaningful measure of programme value than output.

"We may have to realign our strategies and techniques to plan, execute and report our performance that facilitates measure of outcomes," the minister of state for Ayush said.

NAM is being implemented with the vision and objectives to provide Ayush health care services throughout the country by strengthening and improving facilities, to provide informed choice to the needy public.

PTI
first published: Sep 7, 2023 12:47 am

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Recent studies emphasize the therapeutic potential of key Indian herbs such as turmeric and ginger, noted for their anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and prebiotic effects.

Title:

Content: Current research on gut microbial modulation with culinary herbs and spices

An article published in Food Chemistry elaborated on the health benefits of culinary herbs and spices. It stated that these plant extracts harbor the potential for prebiotic effect, owing to their polyphenol content. The bioactive constituents likely harbor anti-inflammatory properties and modulate the gut microbe. Using herbs and spices could prevent certain diseases associated with impaired gut barrier function and obesity.

Background

Many branches of alternative medicine, like Ayurveda, Siddha, and Unani,  originated in India. The use of spices and herbs for medicinal purposes is an age-old practice, used even today – owing to the anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties of these plant extracts and their high polyphenol content.

The fresh aerial parts (leaf and flowers) of certain plants are used as culinary herbs, whereas the dried remainder parts are used as a culinary spice. In Ayurveda, herbs and spices are not only used for promoting health but also for disease prevention.

Many herbs are used for treating mild gastrointestinal disorders, for instance, ginger for indigestion, turmeric during jaundice, licorice to attenuate gastrointestinal discomfort, and mint supplements during irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Herbs and spices are also used to ward off complications related to obesity, cardiovascular diseases, stroke, and certain cancers.

The Mediterranean diet includes many herbs and spices, which renders its anti-inflammatory and oxidative stress reduction potential. Although there are indications for using herbs and spices for medicinal purposes, thorough scientific investigation is warranted before their prescription for health benefits.

The gut microbiome comprises bacteria, viruses, and eukaryotes. The colon and the large intestine harbor approximately 3.8 x 1013 microbes; the majority are bacteria. The gut microbiota can be categorized in many ways and differs according to the host’s age, dietary pattern, health status, environment, and medication use.

Identifying and characterizing the gut microbiota can be culture-independent (for example, fluorescent in situ hybridization or FIAH) or culture-dependent (traditional method of bacterial plating). The advanced culture-dependent method also exists, like meta-genomics sequencing, polymerase chain reaction (PCR), DNA sequencing, and immunoglobulin A sequencing.

Functions of the gut microbiome have been studied using human fecal specimens and multiple-stage complex gut models to determine the effects of dietary components on the gut microbial community and the effects of the gut microbiome on the overall well-being of the host. However, the entire functionality remains incompletely understood.

The review

This literature review explored current research findings on the effects of herbs and spices on gut microbes and the resulting health benefits.

Dietary modulation of the gut microbiota can improve overall health. Probiotics are dietary non-digestible carbohydrates that are not destroyed by the enzymes and digestive acids secreted by the upper digestive tract and enter the colon as fructans and galactans.

These metabolic byproducts are selectively utilized by beneficial bacteria which confer health benefits and improve the dysbiosis caused by illness, poor nutrition, aging, antibiotic use, and lifestyle alterations. Habitual consumption of probiotics can alter gut microbes by promoting specific bacterial populations.

Anaerobic gut bacteria ferment indigestible carbohydrates, which produce SCFAs (short-chain fatty acids). SCFAs impart numerous health benefits, such as – fat reduction, impeding type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) progression, along with anticarcinogenic effects.

Another substance beneficial for health is prebiotics. Prebiotics are substrates selectively used by the host microbiome to confer health benefits. Prebiotics use several pathways leading to positive impacts on health. They promote polyphenol production; these modulate the gut microbiome.

Polyphenols are also found in herbs and spices; hence, these plant extracts may impose prebiotic effects. Polyphenols are phytochemicals; dietary polyphenols aid in maintaining gut homeostasis by selectively acting as prebiotics. They also show antipathogenic and antioxidant effects and play crucial roles in cell signaling, insulin sensitivity, and synthesizing inflammatory mediators.

About 90-95% of the dietary polyphenols reach the colon, are metabolized by gut microbes, and are transformed into metabolites that affect the bioavailability of polyphenols (and hence the health benefits).

Polyphenols can be structurally classified into flavonoids and non-flavonoids. Coumarin and tannins can also be included under dietary polyphenols. Flavonoids modulate the gut microbiome by transforming into absorbable metabolites from an unabsorbable parent. The metabolites, quantity of the consumed polyphenol, and action of gut microbes determine the health benefits. Tannins found in nuts and berries also confer health benefits by converting ellagitannins into urolithin metabolites. These two pathways cause homeostasis of the gut microbiome, prevent oxidative damage and inflammation, and confer an antimicrobial effect against invading pathogens.

However, there remain inconsistencies in herb and spice inventions. Such results can be attributed to the low bioavailability and the variable content of polyphenols in different plant derivatives. The polyphenol content also varies according to the harvesting techniques, shelf life, processing, and cooking methods.

Many studies have found that spices and herbs positively alter gut microbiota. Certain herbs also reduce the risk of cancer by acting as anti-inflammatory compounds. The anti-inflammatory effects are also pronounced in cardiovascular diseases and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Spices promote SCFA production, which has an anti-obesity effect. Researchers have the anti-obesity properties of ginger root. Moreover, ginger and turmeric benefit by increasing the number of beneficial gut microbes.

Conclusion

More studies are warranted to study the impacts of spices and herbs on the gut microbiome and their health benefits on the host before their inclusion into dietary guidelines.

Declaration of Competing Interest

The authors declared a conflict of interest, as one author works Pukka Herbs Ltd and another is in receipt of a PhD studentship funded by PUKKA Herbs Ltd.

Journal reference:

Written by

Nidhi Saha

I am a medical content writer and editor. My interests lie in public health awareness and medical communication. I have worked as a clinical dentist and as a consultant research writer in an Indian medical publishing house. It is my constant endeavor is to update knowledge on newer treatment modalities relating to various medical fields. I have also aided in proofreading and publication of manuscripts in accredited medical journals. I like to sketch, read and listen to music in my leisure time.

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The London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine will work with the All India Institute of Ayurveda to determine whether a traditional Indian herb can help people recover from long Covid.

Ashwagandha, commonly known as Indian winter cherry, is traditionally used in the Indian Ayurvedic system of medicine to boost energy, reduce stress and strengthen the immune system.

Experts said recent trials had proven the herb’s efficacy in reducing anxiety, stress, improving muscle strength and reducing fatigue symptoms in patients with chronic diseases.

Long Covid patients can suffer from cognitive dysfunction, poor mental health, extreme fatigue and muscle weakness.

It is estimated these symptoms affect 10 to 20 per cent of Covid survivors and can last for one to three months or longer in many cases.

The study, funded by the Ministry of Ayush of the Government of India, will include a double-blind clinical trial involving 2,000 people living in the UK with long Covid.

Half of the trial participants will take 500mg Ashwagandha tablets twice a day for three months, while the other half will be given a placebo.

Researchers will randomly select participants to have a monthly follow-up of self-reported quality of life, impairment to activities of daily living, mental and physical health symptoms, supplement use and adverse events.

The study is expected to last for over a year.

“Ashwagandha has been shown to reduce symptoms of other conditions that are similar to those of long Covid, so we are hopeful that it will be an effective way to combat the condition,” said Sanjay Kinra, professor in clinical epidemiology at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine.

The research is also supported by the UK’s All-Party Parliamentary Group on Indian Traditional Sciences and the Traditional Complementary and Integrative Medicine Unit at the World Health Organisation (WHO).

Research is the only way to ensure appropriate integration of traditional medicine knowledge into mainstream medical practice,” said technical officer at WHO Geneva, Geetha Krishnan, who helped to facilitate the research project.

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Addressing the gathering Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, said, “We need to continuously work toward the documentation of ‘Data Based Evidence’, we had Ayurveda’s results as well as effects in our favour, but we were lagging behind in terms of evidence. He emphasized that our medical data, research, and journals have to be brought together to verify every claim on modern scientific parameters.”

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Printable version | Feb 18, 2022 8:35:17 pm | https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/telangana/centre-in-favour-of-locating-global-centre-for-traditional-medicine-in-hyderabad/article65062674.ece

What does traditional Indian medicine generally treat?

While the potential of Indian herbal medicine is promising, regulatory challenges arise.