### Report on the Hagia Sophia Controversy

#### Introduction
The Hagia Sophia, located in Istanbul, holds immense historical and cultural significance as both a Byzantine cathedral and an Ottoman mosque.

Its recent reconversion into a mosque by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in 2020 has sparked international controversy.

This report aims to provide insights into the criticism surrounding this decision, particularly focusing on its religious undertones and political motivations.

#### Historical Background
Originally built as a cathedral in 537 AD during the Byzantine Empire, the Hagia Sophia was converted into a mosque following the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople in 1453.

In 1935, under the secular leadership of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, it was transformed into a museum, symbolizing Turkey's commitment to secularism and interfaith dialogue.

The building was also designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, further emphasizing its global importance.

#### Criticism of the Reconversion

**

### Report on the Hagia Sophia Controversy

#### Introduction
The Hagia Sophia, located in Istanbul, holds immense historical and cultural significance as both a Byzantine cathedral and an Ottoman mosque.

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If The Earthquake In Turkey Topples Erdogan Democratically, What Will He Do To Retain Power And What Happens To The Region: Israel, Saudi, Iran, Russia, Ukraine, Europe?

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The devastating earthquake in Southern Turkey (and Syria) on February 6 also severely damaged President Erdogan's prestige and his chances of retaining power in the upcoming May 14 elections. That is if he allows the popular vote to determine the outcome freely. Much of the world knows why he's in trouble despite his lock on the national media. Some 50,000 dead on both sides of the border thus far, millions displaced, 156,000 buildings destroyed - the horror compounded by the corruption, incompetence and vindictiveness of officialdom. The notorious earthquake tax which was levied to ensure safe construction, instead, disappeared into the pockets of government cronies. Cheaply constructed buildings pancaked along street after street in multiple towns and cities. Amnesty laws had allowed owners to pay fines to dodge the rules. The fines went up the corruption pyramid as customary in Erdoganistan. A terrific recent article on the situation by Turkiye expert Henry J. Barkey of the Council On Foreign Relations details the current scenario .

Barkey's article is titled “Erdogan Is In Danger”; he like many other commentators believes this could be the end for Turkey's strongman populist leader. And though Barkey mentions that Erdogan and his AK party might cheat in the May parliamentary/presidential elections, he doesn't explore the situation fully, especially the regional and geostrategic repercussions of internal troubles. That's what this column is about. Neither Erdo nor his party can afford to lose power. Losing power means ultimately losing control over information – they are likely to be lynched in their homes when the full scale of kleptocracy, some two decades worth, begins to leak out. The military won't protect them, sore as it still is about being persecuted down the years. So the regime will try to hold on to power by any means - which could result in a melt-down of civic order sooner rather than later. Certainly, Erdogan's leverage will be severely diluted. But he will find a way.

One problem is that, still, the opposition is arguably not ready for prime time. It has already scarcely survived a divisive crisis just days ago. The leaders of the two rival opposition parties did agree to unite finally but we shouldn't forget that Erdo built his sway by fracturing them incessantly, and we can expect a relentless blizzard of pseudo-scandals against them in the media. It won't work; the country won't stomach barefaced government manipulation with the devastation still so fresh. We've seen inklings of the mood: pro-government attempts at politicizing the salvage process ignited fury on the ground. Blocking relief from foreign groups, trying to monopolize the aid deliveries, blaming opposition municipalities – all got instant pushback. Meanwhile, the President's favorite international bogeys, the countries he likes to blame for all ills – US, Israel, Greece, Europe, Sweden (for supposedly harboring Kurdish 'terrorists') and the like, all sent hardworking relief teams and supplies before Ankara could get its own act together. No more weaponizing of xenophobia to distract from his failures.

What then will Erdo resort to? Various businessmen and building owners have been arrested. Expect him to redirect public anger, sacrifice a few oligarchs perhaps. It won’t suffice. He will try to rally the country around him as the only hope for order. Too late for that. He will flood the devastated areas with money – the Saudis have just deposited $5 billion in Turkey's central bank to signal their support (more about that later). He will certainly mess with voting infrastructure and ballot counts, as he's often done in Kurdish areas, by making election centers scarce and hard of access in opposition areas and man them exclusively with loyalists. The most affected provinces in Turkiye were hitherto largely pro-AKP. He can kiss farewell to those votes. In short, any finessing that results in victory for him or his AK party, however close, will engender outrage. Even if he 'wins', he will have lost. No, Erdogan's only option, if he's to avoid massive civil strife, is to continue ruling through some form of ultra-powerful shadowy back-seat-driving role.

Crazy as that sounds, it has precedent in the region. Just to the north, in the Republic of Georgia, an unelected eminence grise figure (Bidzina Ivanishvili) has run the country for ten years from behind the scenes. As Georgia's richest oligarch, with infinite access to funds and influence from Moscow, he has puppeteered the political process minutely, even by flooding voters with cash prior to elections. The capital, Tbilisi, and its parliament square is currently roiling with protest but to what effect? He can't exactly resign from a post he doesn't occupy. There's no legal or concrete recourse for the public. This is the kind of role Erdogan will aim for. He owns the economy through oligarchs. Ditto the media. His appointees dominate the police, judiciary and prisons. Plus the religious and educational institutions. The army is cowed and supine. What is there left that could trouble him? The people? Well, yes, but he will hang on to the bitter end.

In a 'managed democracy' like Turkey hitherto under Erdogan, as in Russia, Georgia, Hungary, Venezuela and elsewhere, cronyism works like a web where the component parts depend on each other to function at all. The police arrest popular opposition leaders, the judiciary arrests them, the media dutifully smears them. Everyone is implicated in each others' crimes. All bosses depend on Erdogan's patronage. Crony oligarchs amass zillions, depend on the leader's stability and favor, help fund him to retain power to employ officials, judges, broadcasters, university chancellors, banks, hospitals. The entire civil service is packed with loyalists. A new government will need to purge vast numbers of people, dispossess kleptocrat-managers, starting from the top down. In short, with Erdogan gone, Turkiye's institutions could suffer severe tremors, at least in the short term. L'etat c'est moi, as Louis XIV said. That bodes ill for domestic stability – and equally for continuity in regional relations.

Now, left to itself, Turkey can get through such upheavals as the loss of Erdogan at the helm. It has weathered such crises before, not least via transient military coups, but there's too much at stake strategically at this juncture for outside players merely to stand back and watch. A chaotic Turkey would threaten regional, even global, stability. A whiff of chaos, economic meltdown, capital flight, tourism collapse, and you can see real trouble ahead. Which is why the Saudis made such a substantial early deposit in the central bank as a stabilizing vote of confidence. And why they just acted to restore diplomatic relations with Iran. Yes with Iran. Imagine that. The Saudis. After all this time. What could prompt such a weird initiative suddenly? The prospect of meltdown in Turkey is surely one big reason. Why? Because Erdogan had united with Israel to fortify Azerbaijan as a northern distraction to Iran, thus helping the Saudi struggle against the mullahs. Soon he may not have the discretion to make such decisions.

A lot of foreign powers would like Erdogan to keep sway in some form, because they're invested in his policies. Israel too would like Turkey to keep supporting Azerbaijan militarily to distract Iran from the north. Europe likes Ankara's policies of absorbing Syrian refugees. Erdogan's forward diplomacy in Central Asia – military guarantees to the Uzbeks and Kazakhs - is displacing Moscow's hegemony. The US likes that. The Saudis, just yesterday enemies of Erdogan, today need his robust pro-Sunni belligerence to counteract Iran's Shiite empire building. All this could change if the regime changes in Turkey. Opposition leaders have made noises about reversing Erdo's past constitutional machinations – they aim to move power from the Presidency back to parliament. That means a return to process and internal haggling before any decision gets made. Which also means no more simple unilateral deal-making with one man.

Let us consider the effect on Russia and Ukraine. Ankara just decided to block the sanctions-busting passage of goods to Russia through Turkey. What took them so long and why now? Erdogan's past equivocations on sanctions allowed him to keep Putin semi-happy while, at the same time, provocatively supplying Ukraine with war-drones. It also meant huge amounts of dark funds in Turkish bank coffers and oligarch yachts in marinas around Bodrum spending money. Lots of Ruski tourists and draft-dodging emigres, up to 19,000 a day last summer on the Med coast. Windfall for Turkey's economy. You will notice that there's no resolution to freeze Russian accounts especially coming via other countries. But, in the run-up to elections, Erdogan wants to avoid hostile US actions on his sanctions-busting, anything that would shake the economy, like embargoes on guilty Turkish banks. So he has thrown a sop to Cerberus by closing the goods-transiting loophole, said to benefit Turkiye some $738 million a month or more.

This is what happens when kleptocracies achieve state capture. They're not good at weathering cataclysms; the resulting power transitions become highly explosive. For the Soviet Union it was Chernobyl. For Turkey, the earthquake's biggest aftershock may be regional and global.

PersuasionErdoğan Is In Danger

How did the role of Hagia Sophia change following the Ottoman conquest?

Hagia Sophia became a central Islamic religious site for centuries

What was the original historical and cultural significance of Hagia Sophia in the Byzantine Empire?

Served as the central church of Byzantine Christianity,

Its recent reconversion into a mosque by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in 2020 has sparked international controversy.

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

This report aims to provide insights into the criticism surrounding this decision, particularly focusing on its religious undertones and political motivations.

Title:

Content: Erdogan on the World Political Stage, or An Arsonist Posing as a Fireman

127
0

The 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly this past week became a forum to address some global issues plaguing the population of the planet. The main topics, of course, were the Covid pandemic and global warming.

The assembly witnessed the generosity of the US in providing 500 million doses of the Covid vaccine to the developing world and the commitment of the major nations to tend urgently to the dangers of ecological disasters. Even a reticent China pledged to defund coal-operated industries.

The session also provided an opportunity for President Joseph Biden to present a new US direction, shifting from “relentless wars” to “relentless diplomacy.” That statement needs to be seen and analyzed within the context of Foggy Bottom’s containment policy of Russia and challenge to China’s global dominance through soft power.

What interests the Armenians most are the conduct and rhetoric of Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Mr. Erdogan’s demeanor and body language exuded one single message to the world community: Turkey has become a world player and has to be treated as such.

Before delving into the regional conflicts, where the Turkish president wore the mantle of peacemaker, Mr. Erdogan addressed two major issues: the inefficacy of the UN Security Council and Islamophobia raging in the West.

In recent years, the UN Security Council has become one of the major foci of Mr. Erdogan. He particularly resents the fact that five major permanent members (the US, the UK, France, Russia and China) retain veto power over vital global issues. He maintains that five members are too few to resolve all problems facing the UN and he believes that the time has come for countries like Turkey to join the elite, very much like his contention that Turkey’s international clout warrants it to join the nuclear club.

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When Mr. Erdogan criticized the West for harboring Islamophobia, he did not realize that the issue could have a boomerang effect. Indeed, the policies and actions of leaders in the Muslim world such as Mr. Erdogan, who weaponize religion and use it as a political tool to meet their ambitions of building a world sultanate, contribute to the generation of Islamophobia. The irony is that Mr. Erdogan’s Turkey uses state-of-the-art weaponry to revive the dark days of Ottoman misrule over former subject nations, many of them inhabited primarily by Muslims, and to harken back to a glorious history of power.

Mr. Erdogan’s AK Party, when it came to power in 2003, reversed Ataturk’s policy of the division of state and religion. The founder of the modern Republic of Turkey had tried to emulate the Western democracies, confining the mullahs to the mosques and emancipating women by eliminating the veil.

Mr. Erdogan, by contrast, banked his political fortunes on the ignorance of fanatical masses and over the years has gradually brought back the marriage of religion and politics.

He was not satisfied by his actions at home and decided to export that policy overseas by funding madrassas in third-world countries to train a new generation of fanatical Islamic youth. He spread his message of hate in Europe as well, encouraging the Muslim citizens there to bask in their separateness and listen to extremist mullahs rather than try to assimilate. As if that were not enough, he asked Muslim families in Europe to bear five children each so as to increase their numbers rapidly, ready for political action when necessary. He also threatened to blow up Russia from within, politicizing and weaponizing Russia’s 25 million Muslim citizens.

Erdogan has refined the scourge of terrorism to build armies of mercenaries to destabilize many countries like Iraq, Syria, Libya and the region of the Caucasus. Therefore, when Mr. Erdogan resorts to using Islam as a political weapon, he should not be surprised that nations targeted by that threat resort to their defenses and one such defense, unfortunately, is the ugly face of Islamophobia.

The Muslim faith, like any other religion, deserves respect, but not its misinterpretation which enslaves women and practices beheadings, amputations and terrorism in other countries.

Christianity, in its turn, had its problems with extremism, weaponizing religion and franchising it in colonial outposts to conquer territories and torture people’s minds in the straightjacket of the Spanish Inquisition as well as the Crusades.

But with the advent of rule of law and democratic form of governance, the Christian world for the most part adopted the separation of church and state.

Erdogan’s party and government are very far from that. The moment Islam is divorced from his policies, his entire value system will collapse and this will dash his imperial dreams.

After exposing major issues troubling him for a long time, Mr. Erdogan began dispensing his cure for almost all the hotspots in the world; for the Cyprus issue, he admonished his Greek interlocutors and advised them to negotiate and work within the realm of international law, never mind that his occupation army has illegally divided that sovereign country into two entities. Once again, he exhorted the use of international law to settle controversies in the eastern Mediterranean while bullying his neighbors by exploring hydrocarbons in their littoral waters. He promised to eliminate terrorist groups in Syria, while the world has come to find out that Erdogan and his government have developed a lucrative business by training and sending into expeditions different Islamic groups. In fact, ISIS was funded and created by Turkey, until the US intervened and destroyed its infrastructure.

Mr. Erdogan called on the international community to restore Syria’s territorial integrity while keeping parts of Syrian territory under his rule. On the Jammu and Kashmir issue, he sided with Pakistan, a hub for terrorism, and a refuge for Osama Bin Laden and the Taliban criminals. Pakistan also is a partner in crime with Turkey and Azerbaijan in their aggression against Armenia. After listening to Erdogan’s remarks, India’s Minister of Exterior Subrahmanyam Jaishankar advised Erdogan “to learn to respect the sovereignty of independent nations.” In the case of Crimea, Erdogan refused to acknowledge the results of the elections in that peninsula. That was a two-pronged policy, with one prong intended to ingratiate himself to President Biden, who holds the same position, and the other to thumb his nose at President Putin, with whom he intends to meet soon in Sochi. Therefore, he plans to negotiate with the latter from the position of power. To further enhance that position, he has recently moved fresh forces into Syria.

Since the US has successfully muzzled the Arab world, Mr. Erdogan has emerged as the sole defender of the Palestinian cause. Although, here again, he soft-peddled history, not to ruffle feathers in Israel, as he did in the past, today, he is eager to mend fences to reach out to the US administration through Israel.

In the past, Mr. Erdogan used to accuse the Chinese government of committing genocide in the Xinjiang province against the Turkic Muslim Uyghurs. This time around, he treaded softly by advising China to solve the issue within the principles of its territorial integrity.

Karabakh was also on Mr. Erdogan’s agenda. Reversing the roles in that conflict, he blamed Armenia for having occupied Azerbaijan’s territory. No one was able to detect any “positive signals” toward Armenia, as mentioned recently by Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.

After watching Mr. Erdogan performance at that world forum, turning the issues on their heads, one could only conclude the arsonist was posing as fireman.

Mr. Erdogan arrived in New York with great expectations. The composition of his delegation made clear all his intentions. His delegation included the head of the unrecognized Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus Ersin Tatar, because he called on the world community to recognize that entity as a sovereign state. To give credence to his call, he has decided to allocate a section to it in the new 55-story “Turkish Home” or Turkevi Center building erected next to the UN headquarters. He also presided with great fanfare over the opening of that “House.”

Anticipation was great in Turkish political circles because Mr. Erdogan had hinted about a possible meeting with President Biden. That meeting could have counterbalanced Mr. Erdogan’s row with NATO allies, in insisting to retain S-400 missiles from Russia. Also that would justify Turkey’s slaughter of Syrian Kurds allied with the US. But President Biden had no time to meet with him. That summit, along with another meeting with the heads of corporate America would have boosted investments in Turkish economy. Like President Biden, the heads of major US companies shied away from meeting with Erdogan.

We should be reminded that Mr. Biden had called Erdogan an “autocrat” before his election and had called on America to help his opposition topple him.

Mr. Erdogan complained that he had worked well with all US presidents during his 19-year rule but, he added, “I can’t say that we started well with Mr. Biden.”

The coolness towards Mr. Erdogan and his actions around the world was manifest also in other signals; for example, the call by France and the US to resume negotiations on the Karabakh conflict, which Turkey and Azerbaijan assume has been resolved through the application of force.

Also, in the congratulatory message sent by President Biden to Prime Minister Pashinyan, on the 30th anniversary of Armenia’s independence, Mr. Biden did not need to take the extra step of reassuring Armenia that Washington will work towards the release of Armenian POWs from Azerbaijani prisons.

The only meeting which was held on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly was between US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Çavusoglu. That meeting lasted for one hour and dealt with the crises in Afghanistan, Syria and Karabakh.

In an article published in Al Monitor, Cengiz Çandar writes: “For Erdogan, his priority is to boost his dwindling image in Turkey. His survival until the elections in 2023, centenary of the foundation of Turkey, is the most pressing issue in his personal and political agenda. Thus, every step he takes and every statement he makes aims to advance that political agenda. His visit to New York was no exception in this regard. Yet, he did not achieve much despite the expectations of his team before the visit.”

It is very apparent that Mr. Erdogan’s policy of independent actions has backfired; his bid to join the European Union has failed and today the US is giving him the cold shoulder. His alienation from Europe and NATO may provide some comfort to the Kremlin but Mr. Erdogan cannot stretch his leash too far from Washington. As he returns home, he has too much to consider.

Mr. Çandor concludes his article with the following statement: “In terms of Erdogan’s image within Turkey, his New York performance seemingly failed to create much impact, neither positively nor negatively. However, what international observers should not miss is that the visit, once more, confirmed the over-broadening wedges between Turkey and the Western world.”

The reason Mr. Erdogan was able to get away with murder thus far was because he could manipulate opposing powers against each other. That flexibility seems to have hit a snag.

His pompous ceremony at the dedication of the “Turkish House” with a prayer by a mullah invited from Turkey and his tumultuous motorcades around Manhattan have amounted to very little, if anything, of concrete significance.

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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.

#### Historical Background
Originally built as a cathedral in 537 AD during the Byzantine Empire, the Hagia Sophia was converted into a mosque following the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople in 1453.

Title:

Content: between supporters and opponents.
Divergent views on the conversion of Benghazi Cathedral into a mosque
News from Libya24
A banner reading “Imam bin Anas Mosque ” hung two days ago at the entrance to the Benghazi Cathedral sparked controversy on social media platforms, prompting the Benghazi municipality to talk about the matter.
She said she would take legal action against any changes to the cathedral building.
In a statement on Wednesday, the municipality stressed that it is always working to preserve the memory of the historic city, which has passed through all historical eras and in all the different eras of governance, noting that it places within its work programs the restoration of historical buildings as a historical heritage of the city.
Divergent opinions
Libya News 24 asked its followers on Twitter and Facebook about their opinion on the conversion of the cathedral building into a mosque, as the answers varied between a strong supporter and a rejection of the idea and to maintain it as a landmark of the city of Benghazi.
Ahmed Mustafa says: “Why is it because of the narrowness of the land and the abundance of reconstruction?
This is a reminder of the circumstances, difficulties and conditions that Libya has experienced and it is not permissible to remove evidence from historical evidence of the circumstances, conditions and struggles that Libya has experienced throughout history.
Akila al-Barassi described the idea of turning the cathedral into a mosque as a “historic disaster. ”
Omar Mohammed supported the order and said, “Yes and strongly. ”
As Mahmoud Amsalem said: “Immediately it is converted into a mosque. ”
“There is no other religion in Libya than Islam, and all the churches in Libya have been built by the Vatican and are a foothold for the reoccupation of Libya in the name of religion, ” he said.
Abdullah Kanbous said: “Yes, with all strength and vigor.
“Allah will help Islam and Muslims. ”
Ali Ahmed said that "the first maintenance of the mosque in the area of   Egaila, which was built by Italy and then became a farm for livestock in 2002.
And yet deserted.
As well as the maintenance and establishment of prayer in the mosque Burgo in the Abyar, which was built by an Italian person for the Libyans and then became abandoned and dilapidated and no one prayed there until now. ”
“Certainly, there is no tampering with Benghazi ’ s historical monuments by the ignorant and the ignorant, ” he said.
“If there are no mosques nearby and there is an overcrowding of worshipers, yes, otherwise it can be used as a public library and a cultural center, ” says Ali al-Zayani.
As he said, NSD.
Libby: “Yes, with all the power.
Our land and our king. ”
He added: “It is strange that thousands of fascist churches have been demolished and some of them have been converted into government buildings and no one has complained or even paid attention.
“Why do you care about the legacy of the landlord? ”
"Mussolini, who built thousands of churches on our land and the homeland of 200,000 fascist occupiers, was executed and eaten with his body, and some are still crying for his legacy.
“Those who say monuments and landmarks of Libya need to be disciplined. ”
Omar Abu-Ghazaleh said: “Yes.
Libya is a country of Muslims. ”
The cathedral is a witness to history.
She added: “It is one of the ancient buildings and a historical place that they built and made a witness to history.
On the other hand, Libya may become a country and a government interested in tourism and a place to attract visitors. ”
As for Issa bin Salil, he asked: “Does this subject need a question as well as a survey?! ”
It is said that the time has come for a change of heart.
As Othman Bu Omar said: “Yes, I agree with turning it into a mosque.
It is no longer a church.
The building was for the Socialist Union and has been changed since the Gaddafi era. ”
Related Articles
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How did the role of Hagia Sophia change following the Ottoman conquest?

Sultan Mehmed II converted Hagia Sophia into a mosque,

Hagia Sophia became a central Islamic religious site for centuries

What was the original historical and cultural significance of Hagia Sophia in the Byzantine Empire?

Served as the central church of Byzantine Christianity,

When was Hagia Sophia built and under whose rule?

In 1935, under the secular leadership of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, it was transformed into a museum, symbolizing Turkey's commitment to secularism and interfaith dialogue.

What was the significance of Hagia Sophia's conversion into a museum in 1934?

Symbolized Turkey's secular reforms under Ataturk

The building was also designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, further emphasizing its global importance.

What was the significance of Hagia Sophia's conversion into a museum in 1934?

repositioned Hagia Sophia as a global cultural landmark.

#### Criticism of the Reconversion

**


### Report on the Hagia Sophia Controversy

#### Introduction
The Hagia Sophia, located in Istanbul, holds immense historical and cultural significance as both a Byzantine cathedral and an Ottoman mosque.

Its recent reconversion into a mosque by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in 2020 has sparked widespread controversy, particularly among Western tourists and international observers.

This report aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the criticism surrounding this decision, focusing on its religious undertones and political implications.

#### Historical Background
Originally constructed as a Byzantine cathedral in the 6th century under Emperor Justinian I, the Hagia Sophia was converted into an Ottoman mosque following the conquest of Constantinople in 1453.

In 1935, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk transformed it into a museum as part of his secular reforms, symbolizing Turkey's modernization and commitment to multiculturalism.

The building was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, further emphasizing its global importance.

### Report on the Hagia Sophia Controversy

#### Introduction
The Hagia Sophia, located in Istanbul, holds immense historical and cultural significance as both a Byzantine cathedral and an Ottoman mosque.

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 the role of Hagia Sophia change following the Ottoman conquest?

Hagia Sophia became a central Islamic religious site for centuries

What was the original historical and cultural significance of Hagia Sophia in the Byzantine Empire?

Served as the central church of Byzantine Christianity,

Its recent reconversion into a mosque by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in 2020 has sparked widespread controversy, particularly among Western tourists and international observers.

This report aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the criticism surrounding this decision, focusing on its religious undertones and political implications.

Title:

Content: Erdogan on the World Political Stage, or An Arsonist Posing as a Fireman

127
0

The 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly this past week became a forum to address some global issues plaguing the population of the planet. The main topics, of course, were the Covid pandemic and global warming.

The assembly witnessed the generosity of the US in providing 500 million doses of the Covid vaccine to the developing world and the commitment of the major nations to tend urgently to the dangers of ecological disasters. Even a reticent China pledged to defund coal-operated industries.

The session also provided an opportunity for President Joseph Biden to present a new US direction, shifting from “relentless wars” to “relentless diplomacy.” That statement needs to be seen and analyzed within the context of Foggy Bottom’s containment policy of Russia and challenge to China’s global dominance through soft power.

What interests the Armenians most are the conduct and rhetoric of Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Mr. Erdogan’s demeanor and body language exuded one single message to the world community: Turkey has become a world player and has to be treated as such.

Before delving into the regional conflicts, where the Turkish president wore the mantle of peacemaker, Mr. Erdogan addressed two major issues: the inefficacy of the UN Security Council and Islamophobia raging in the West.

In recent years, the UN Security Council has become one of the major foci of Mr. Erdogan. He particularly resents the fact that five major permanent members (the US, the UK, France, Russia and China) retain veto power over vital global issues. He maintains that five members are too few to resolve all problems facing the UN and he believes that the time has come for countries like Turkey to join the elite, very much like his contention that Turkey’s international clout warrants it to join the nuclear club.

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When Mr. Erdogan criticized the West for harboring Islamophobia, he did not realize that the issue could have a boomerang effect. Indeed, the policies and actions of leaders in the Muslim world such as Mr. Erdogan, who weaponize religion and use it as a political tool to meet their ambitions of building a world sultanate, contribute to the generation of Islamophobia. The irony is that Mr. Erdogan’s Turkey uses state-of-the-art weaponry to revive the dark days of Ottoman misrule over former subject nations, many of them inhabited primarily by Muslims, and to harken back to a glorious history of power.

Mr. Erdogan’s AK Party, when it came to power in 2003, reversed Ataturk’s policy of the division of state and religion. The founder of the modern Republic of Turkey had tried to emulate the Western democracies, confining the mullahs to the mosques and emancipating women by eliminating the veil.

Mr. Erdogan, by contrast, banked his political fortunes on the ignorance of fanatical masses and over the years has gradually brought back the marriage of religion and politics.

He was not satisfied by his actions at home and decided to export that policy overseas by funding madrassas in third-world countries to train a new generation of fanatical Islamic youth. He spread his message of hate in Europe as well, encouraging the Muslim citizens there to bask in their separateness and listen to extremist mullahs rather than try to assimilate. As if that were not enough, he asked Muslim families in Europe to bear five children each so as to increase their numbers rapidly, ready for political action when necessary. He also threatened to blow up Russia from within, politicizing and weaponizing Russia’s 25 million Muslim citizens.

Erdogan has refined the scourge of terrorism to build armies of mercenaries to destabilize many countries like Iraq, Syria, Libya and the region of the Caucasus. Therefore, when Mr. Erdogan resorts to using Islam as a political weapon, he should not be surprised that nations targeted by that threat resort to their defenses and one such defense, unfortunately, is the ugly face of Islamophobia.

The Muslim faith, like any other religion, deserves respect, but not its misinterpretation which enslaves women and practices beheadings, amputations and terrorism in other countries.

Christianity, in its turn, had its problems with extremism, weaponizing religion and franchising it in colonial outposts to conquer territories and torture people’s minds in the straightjacket of the Spanish Inquisition as well as the Crusades.

But with the advent of rule of law and democratic form of governance, the Christian world for the most part adopted the separation of church and state.

Erdogan’s party and government are very far from that. The moment Islam is divorced from his policies, his entire value system will collapse and this will dash his imperial dreams.

After exposing major issues troubling him for a long time, Mr. Erdogan began dispensing his cure for almost all the hotspots in the world; for the Cyprus issue, he admonished his Greek interlocutors and advised them to negotiate and work within the realm of international law, never mind that his occupation army has illegally divided that sovereign country into two entities. Once again, he exhorted the use of international law to settle controversies in the eastern Mediterranean while bullying his neighbors by exploring hydrocarbons in their littoral waters. He promised to eliminate terrorist groups in Syria, while the world has come to find out that Erdogan and his government have developed a lucrative business by training and sending into expeditions different Islamic groups. In fact, ISIS was funded and created by Turkey, until the US intervened and destroyed its infrastructure.

Mr. Erdogan called on the international community to restore Syria’s territorial integrity while keeping parts of Syrian territory under his rule. On the Jammu and Kashmir issue, he sided with Pakistan, a hub for terrorism, and a refuge for Osama Bin Laden and the Taliban criminals. Pakistan also is a partner in crime with Turkey and Azerbaijan in their aggression against Armenia. After listening to Erdogan’s remarks, India’s Minister of Exterior Subrahmanyam Jaishankar advised Erdogan “to learn to respect the sovereignty of independent nations.” In the case of Crimea, Erdogan refused to acknowledge the results of the elections in that peninsula. That was a two-pronged policy, with one prong intended to ingratiate himself to President Biden, who holds the same position, and the other to thumb his nose at President Putin, with whom he intends to meet soon in Sochi. Therefore, he plans to negotiate with the latter from the position of power. To further enhance that position, he has recently moved fresh forces into Syria.

Since the US has successfully muzzled the Arab world, Mr. Erdogan has emerged as the sole defender of the Palestinian cause. Although, here again, he soft-peddled history, not to ruffle feathers in Israel, as he did in the past, today, he is eager to mend fences to reach out to the US administration through Israel.

In the past, Mr. Erdogan used to accuse the Chinese government of committing genocide in the Xinjiang province against the Turkic Muslim Uyghurs. This time around, he treaded softly by advising China to solve the issue within the principles of its territorial integrity.

Karabakh was also on Mr. Erdogan’s agenda. Reversing the roles in that conflict, he blamed Armenia for having occupied Azerbaijan’s territory. No one was able to detect any “positive signals” toward Armenia, as mentioned recently by Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.

After watching Mr. Erdogan performance at that world forum, turning the issues on their heads, one could only conclude the arsonist was posing as fireman.

Mr. Erdogan arrived in New York with great expectations. The composition of his delegation made clear all his intentions. His delegation included the head of the unrecognized Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus Ersin Tatar, because he called on the world community to recognize that entity as a sovereign state. To give credence to his call, he has decided to allocate a section to it in the new 55-story “Turkish Home” or Turkevi Center building erected next to the UN headquarters. He also presided with great fanfare over the opening of that “House.”

Anticipation was great in Turkish political circles because Mr. Erdogan had hinted about a possible meeting with President Biden. That meeting could have counterbalanced Mr. Erdogan’s row with NATO allies, in insisting to retain S-400 missiles from Russia. Also that would justify Turkey’s slaughter of Syrian Kurds allied with the US. But President Biden had no time to meet with him. That summit, along with another meeting with the heads of corporate America would have boosted investments in Turkish economy. Like President Biden, the heads of major US companies shied away from meeting with Erdogan.

We should be reminded that Mr. Biden had called Erdogan an “autocrat” before his election and had called on America to help his opposition topple him.

Mr. Erdogan complained that he had worked well with all US presidents during his 19-year rule but, he added, “I can’t say that we started well with Mr. Biden.”

The coolness towards Mr. Erdogan and his actions around the world was manifest also in other signals; for example, the call by France and the US to resume negotiations on the Karabakh conflict, which Turkey and Azerbaijan assume has been resolved through the application of force.

Also, in the congratulatory message sent by President Biden to Prime Minister Pashinyan, on the 30th anniversary of Armenia’s independence, Mr. Biden did not need to take the extra step of reassuring Armenia that Washington will work towards the release of Armenian POWs from Azerbaijani prisons.

The only meeting which was held on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly was between US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Çavusoglu. That meeting lasted for one hour and dealt with the crises in Afghanistan, Syria and Karabakh.

In an article published in Al Monitor, Cengiz Çandar writes: “For Erdogan, his priority is to boost his dwindling image in Turkey. His survival until the elections in 2023, centenary of the foundation of Turkey, is the most pressing issue in his personal and political agenda. Thus, every step he takes and every statement he makes aims to advance that political agenda. His visit to New York was no exception in this regard. Yet, he did not achieve much despite the expectations of his team before the visit.”

It is very apparent that Mr. Erdogan’s policy of independent actions has backfired; his bid to join the European Union has failed and today the US is giving him the cold shoulder. His alienation from Europe and NATO may provide some comfort to the Kremlin but Mr. Erdogan cannot stretch his leash too far from Washington. As he returns home, he has too much to consider.

Mr. Çandor concludes his article with the following statement: “In terms of Erdogan’s image within Turkey, his New York performance seemingly failed to create much impact, neither positively nor negatively. However, what international observers should not miss is that the visit, once more, confirmed the over-broadening wedges between Turkey and the Western world.”

The reason Mr. Erdogan was able to get away with murder thus far was because he could manipulate opposing powers against each other. That flexibility seems to have hit a snag.

His pompous ceremony at the dedication of the “Turkish House” with a prayer by a mullah invited from Turkey and his tumultuous motorcades around Manhattan have amounted to very little, if anything, of concrete significance.

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

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

#### Historical Background
Originally constructed as a Byzantine cathedral in the 6th century under Emperor Justinian I, the Hagia Sophia was converted into an Ottoman mosque following the conquest of Constantinople in 1453.

How did the role of Hagia Sophia change following the Ottoman conquest?

Sultan Mehmed II converted Hagia Sophia into a mosque,

Hagia Sophia became a central Islamic religious site for centuries

What was the original historical and cultural significance of Hagia Sophia in the Byzantine Empire?

Served as the central church of Byzantine Christianity,

When was Hagia Sophia built and under whose rule?

In 1935, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk transformed it into a museum as part of his secular reforms, symbolizing Turkey's modernization and commitment to multiculturalism.

What was the significance of Hagia Sophia's conversion into a museum in 1934?

Symbolized Turkey's secular reforms under Ataturk

The building was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, further emphasizing its global importance.

Title:

Content: June 1, Wednesday | Last update — 22: 04 | vz.ru
Sections
Erdogan is betting on independence
Timofey Bordachev, Program Director of the Valdai Club
Turkey is now the rare case when, talking to the state, we can almost 100% know that we are in dialogue with a partner, and not with a doll, the strings of which are pulled by a more powerful rival from across the ocean.
Details...
Kiev ’ s anti-church policy is a symptom of Ukraine ’ s disintegration
Roman Lunkin, researcher of religion, sociologist, political scientist
Orthodoxy in Ukraine, as in Russia, is the cement of solidarity that binds both society and the state, therefore undermining the Church is undermining the country.
Details...
Terrorist state in Ukraine must be eliminated
German Sadulaev, writer, publicist
On the path of international terrorism, Kiev is progressing with leaps and bounds.
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Discussion: 23 comments
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The Donetsk People ’ s Republic will have its own merchant fleet.
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Boeing Starliner spacecraft launched to the ISS
Promising spacecraft Starliner company Boeing in the second test flight launched to the International Space Station (ISS) in unmanned mode.
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Azov militants began to surrender
256 Ukrainian militants surrendered at the Azovstal plant in Mariupol.
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"Alexander Nevsky".
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In Orenburg, the legendary “Katyusha ” returned to the park“ Salute, Victory! ”
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in your opinion
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There is a proven method to combat Ukrainian saboteurs
1 June 2022, 21: 05
Photo: Civil Administration of Zaporozhye region / TASS
Text: Evgeny Krutikov
The attack in Melitopol, allegedly directed against a member of the temporary military-civil administration (VGA) of the Zaporozhye region Yevhen Balytsky, again drew attention to the activity of Ukrainian sabotage groups.
How serious is this threat, how does the local population react to it – and how can it be dealt with?
First of all, it is necessary to separate the true information from the false.
Initially, it was reported that a Mercedes car was allegedly blown up near the “house of Balitsky ”.
If you read this information verbatim, you get the impression that what happened in Western Ukrainian apocryphal literature is called “classical Ukrainian atentat ” – an attempt on a“ collaborator ”, that is, a Ukrainian politician cooperating with the Russian authorities.
A local entrepreneur, the owner of Melitopol brewery and other assets, a former pilot who studied in Tambov, and a deputy of the Verkhovna Rada Yevhen Balytsky is really part of the Zaporozhye Regional Administration and performs the duties of the mayor of Melitopol.
Another thing is that during the explosion of an improvised explosive device (IED) in the center of the city, he was not even close there and he was not injured.
For some time, Ukrainian propagandists spread information that his niece was allegedly injured as a result of the terrorist attack, which was presented as a great victory for Ukrainian weapons.
But it also turned out to be fake.
Even the car explosion was misinformation.
The IED, stuffed with bearing balls, was taped to the light pole through the manhole cover of the sewer and powered remotely.
The target was just the same old Mercedes, in which two young women and a guy went to the city administration to deliver humanitarian aid.
Volunteers.
They have been injured and their lives are not in danger.
At the same time, the explosion was heard from the rear of the Melitopol hotel, as a result of which commercial companies (mainly tourist) that rented offices there, and ordinary residents of a ten-storey building opposite, were affected.
Balls only miraculously did not kill anyone, although in the affected apartments were at that time, including children.
Along the way, it turned out that the “house of Balytsky ” is a figure of Ukrainian speech.
The injured ten-storey residential building was built by the construction holding Balitsky, he himself does not live there.
This is known to the residents of Melitopol, but all other consumers of Ukrainian propaganda information easily bought into the “patent for a collaborator ”.
Nearby is really DK Shevchenko, which is a temporary military-civil administration and shopping center Kvartal.
There are always a lot of people, but the terrorist attack was directed against an accidentally passing car and was clearly organized by laymen.
The search on the hot tracks gave nothing, and could not, since the IED was clearly laid down in advance, and it had no specific purpose to undermine it.
The one who drove by blew it up.
Nevertheless, immediately there were questions about the organization of counterintelligence work in the Kherson and Zaporozhye regions.
This is not the first case, and probably not the last.
The investigation revealed several circumstances, at first glance, not directly related to operational counterintelligence work.
But these circumstances highlight the fact that the new authorities - the VGA, and the Russian military with allies - the DPR and the LPR - have to face.
In particular, it turned out that few people thought about working with the local population.
And in the last couple of months, the work in the liberated territories was carried out as if on a whim.
Which led to strange distortions.
For example, unexpectedly sharply and to unprecedented heights since the time of the "Diamond Hand" the role of governors has grown.
It was these modest workers of the rear that was entrusted with the task of drawing up lists of tenants in order to further provide them with Russian pensions, benefits and payments.
In neighborhoods of private buildings, this role is performed by the “elders on the street ”, and in rural areas – by the appointed mayor, if the former“ head ” has escaped.
Now the governors have become not just public utilities, but people on whom the financial well-being of local residents depends.
Interestingly, the Kherson and Zaporozhye regions in analytical notes before the start of the special operation were described as the least pro-Russian in terms of the mood of the population.
But even the extreme Ukrainian nationalists were not there in large numbers.
Yes, there is a huge percentage of the Russian-speaking population speaking an almost correct, “Moscow ” dialect.
But for the most part, this population was and remains apolitical.
Roughly speaking, there was no stable social basis for pro-Russian sentiments, as, for example, in Mariupol.
However, the week-long shutdown of Ukrainian TV channels and their replacement with Russian ones gave an amazing life-giving effect in these regions.
Social polls conducted in Kherson and Zaporozhye regions showed that the number of approving the special operation has increased sharply after the shutdown of Ukrainian TV channels.
The FSB and Rosgvardia did not long search for nationalist activists and former “ATO veterans ”, and then abandoned this occupation, since almost all of them managed to escape in the direction of Kiev.
There, even the defense did not have time to organize, since the organization of “partisan ” had to deal with just the Ukrainian civil administrations of settlements.
And they were again completely “ducks ” even before the arrival of Russian troops.
In other words, there is simply no social and organizational basis for the creation of Bandera guerrilla in Kherson and Zaporozhye regions.
No, the truth, and what could be considered mass support for the new government.
And this is not a question of political convictions, but the continuation by other means of the most important rule of life of the local population: "my house is on the edge."
Part of the local worldview, which in Soviet times was condescendingly called “Rogul ” or“ Kurkul ”.
They laughed at him at the level of anecdotes, but it was and is.
The passivity of the civilian population is a distinctive social feature.
In this context, any, even the most seedy terrorist attack, excites the local population.
And even more so are the attempts of the APU to shell their own “temporarily occupied ” cities with ballistic missiles, as it was in Berdyansk.
The propaganda effect here is paradoxical.
On the one hand, part of the population is offended by this attitude on the part of the native Ukrainian authorities until recently.
Those residents of Melitopol, whose apartments were hit by balloons from a homemade bomb, are simply furious.
On the other hand, such incidents in the eyes of part of the local population cast doubt on the fact that the Russian authorities are here for a long time.
The situation is different in some already liberated regions of the LPR and the DPR.
According to the sources of the newspaper LOOK in the LPR, there “filter not to refilter ”.
For eight years of the presence of the Ukrainian military in some places there was a fusion of part of the local population with the APU and the national battalions.
This does not mean that there will be strong resistance in some liberated settlements.
In most cases, the local population is tired of the terror of the Ukrainian military, especially in the front-line cities, where the APU and the National Bats behaved like in the occupied territories.
Often it was their behavior that provoked the growth of anti-Kiev sentiments.
But still for eight years there was a small, but cohesive social group, which loses preferences with the advent of the new government.
The identification of former Ukrainian servicemen and professional saboteurs, infiltrated on the environment of refugees, put on stream.
They are periodically caught, including when trying to penetrate into Russian-controlled territory.
In Tavria, this work is carried out mainly in the village, where a large proportion of the "Rogul" population, especially in the front-line zone, where individual sabotage groups can penetrate from Zaporozhye and Krivoy Rog.
But in general, anti-terrorist activities in this region should focus not only on traditional operational work, but also on propaganda.
It is not so difficult to catch a single subversive group, but it is somewhat more difficult to create a stable social layer that blocks any support for subversive activities.
The guerrilla always relies solely on the support of the local population.
Nothing new here in the anti-sabotage struggle can not come up with since 1944.
It is unlikely to change a peculiar local mentality, but it is quite possible to make the population believe that the new government is forever.
And in a short time.
Under this condition, the social basis for Ukraine ’ s sabotage operations against the local population will gradually come to naught.
© 2005 - 2021 Business Newspaper Vzglyad LLC
E-mail: information @ vz.ru
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| Central Asia | Afghanistan | Kazakhstan | Kyrgyzstan | Tajikistan | Turkmenistan | Uzbekistan |
News & Events
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Saturday, 12.08.2023
16: 38 Europe is faced with an oil anomaly, - "Vzglyad"
14: 02 Was Moscow founded by the Kazakhs?
Who and why distorts the history of Russia
13: 56 The United States and Britain launched a nuclear attack on...
France and Germany, - S.Atamanov
12: 44 The European Union has no political will of its own, - L. Savin
12: 42 The fate of the earthly civilization is decided.
We are going through a fantastic period in history - Kenichi Omae
12: 34 Alisher Shadmanov again de facto head of health care in Uzbekistan
"Patient" is more likely alive: it is too early to bury the hegemony of the West, - Sergey Kozhemyakin
12: 08 The old capital of Hawaii - Lahaina on Maui burned to the ground
11: 03 Two birds.
It became known where the battle of Mask and Zuckerberg will take place
10: 58 The collapse of American strategy in Africa, - V.Prokhvatilov
09: 21 US wants to leave China without artificial intelligence
00: 20 The energy sector of Uzbekistan from 11 / 08 goes into emergency mode
00: 11 The third way to nowhere.
Poland is about to collapse – Hannah Kramer
00: 09 "Gift to Putin" from Navajo.
The Indians helped to stop the production of uranium in the United States
00: 06 Korean War, which lasts 70 years
Friday, 11.08.2023
23: 31 Bulgarians themselves do not allow the “Russian ”“ Lukoil ” to supply the Ukrainian army with oil
21: 16 RosArmiya again rushes to Kupyansk
21: 12 Khokims of Uzbeks will be personally responsible for curbing inflation - President Mirziyoyev
20: 23 Stalin ’ s experience as a solution to energy problems in Kyrgyzstan - Kanat Kojoev
15: 19 Should Russia help Erdogan save grain deal - Gevorg Mirzayan
14: 27 The African Agony of France, - Andrey Shkolnikov
13: 58 China is close.
The key role of Pakistan - I. Titov
13: 34 Not the Wagner.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Tajikistan revealed details about the main kidnapper and killer of the deputy chairman of Orienbank Ismatulloev
11: 52 Former Head of Pavlodar Region Police Department Nurlan Massimov (Karim ’ s brother), who turned out to be a state conspirator and bribe taker, sat down for 10 years
11: 50 Almaty.
Uzb-oligarch Shadiev - thief and machinist - released from custody.
Served 1 month
11: 49 Dying Sherpa Western climbers in Pakistan sacrificed for record
11: 46 "Global Disaster".
The Unlikely Future of the Future – A.Shkolnikov
11: 45 The West is doomed.
Russia has taken the lead on a new front, - L'Opinion
"Five-day war" between Georgia and Russia: some conclusions and lessons 15 years later
11: 39 Russia launched the station to the moon.
What to expect from the first lunar mission in 50 years?
11: 35 Why Admiral Makarov laid a mine near the palace of the Turkish sultan (story)
11: 16 Water from Kyrgyzstan is not supplied.
Situation in Zhambyl region of Kazakhstan called critical
11: 09 People are dying.
The Strategic Planning Department of the KZ Presidential Administration was headed by a little-known Mr. Yernazar
10: 28 Bloggers Sanjar Ikramov and Sherali Komilov are wanted by the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Uzbekistan
08: 20 Marina Mironova ’ s book “Pandemic: technologies of global lawlessness ” has been published
08: 04 Events in Niger: Fransafrique is replaced by Russian Africa, - Vl.Prokhvatilov
65 children died in Uzbekistan from taking drugs of Indian Marion Biotech
07: 55 The project of settlement of Russian villages by Africans was approved.
To begin with, they plan to build 30 settlements, - MK
07: 52 LGBT insanity: Western countries compete for degree of madness, - V. Ilyin
03: 15 Ranking call to America.
US Inviolability Violated by Fitch Agency - V.Katasonov
03: 14 All in BRICs. on the eve of the meeting of the "brick" five, - Arseny Latov
00: 05 Kyrgyzstan becomes a hub for the transfer of goods to Russia
Thursday, 10.08.2023
22: 53 Rebels threaten to kill ousted Nigerian president if they go to war
22: 39 Iranian trace: North Korean shells spotted in the Russian army
22: 38 Russia and China: who in the "big game" began to play China? - Tatiana Poloskova
22: 24 Assad decided to keep Erdogan at a distance - Igor Subbotin
20: 28 The leader of the mountainous region - the People's Governor of Badakhshan Almamad Niezmamadov - is 80 years old!
11: 19 A legless disabled man stole cast iron batteries in the Kyrgyz Ministry
11: 16 What the investigation of HIV patients in Almaty showed
11: 10 Meaning of Maidan is to live at the expense of the deaths of others - Evdokia Sheremetyeva
11: 09 "Textbook Medinsky": the history of Russia was and remains a corrupt girl ideologists
Archive
© CentrAsiaTop
CenterAsia |
The United States and Britain have launched a nuclear attack on...
France and Germany, - S.Atamanov
13: 56 12.08.2023
The United States and Britain launched a nuclear attack on France and Germany.
Sergey Atamanov
Table compiled by International Nuclear Association and national sources
A coup d'état took place in Niger at the end of July.
Another country in Africa, considered a colony of France by a number of signs, announced that it was stopping the supply of uranium and gold to France.
Uranium was transferred to France at a price 3-4 times lower than the world price (according to E.N. Korendyasov, an expert at the HSE Center for African Studies).
The situation is the same in Mali, in the northeast of which France illegally mined uranium ores.
If we add Guinea and Chad to the list, we can see a number of coincidences: the countries were colonies of France, the resources were extracted and exported at predatory prices for the people, which was one of the reasons for the successful rebellions; each of the countries has reserves of uranium.
I will add another related sign.
All of these countries profess Sunni Islam.
As a result, the conclusion suggests that in the countries of Africa where there is uranium, riots are consistently taking place with the exit from the control of France.
Proceeding from this, a series of violent changes of power can be called "uranium riots", which makes them akin to "color" revolutions.
It is possible that the customer is one, or rather two - the United States and Britain.
Is such a claim justified?
Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Georgia, Yugoslavia are states in which various pro-Western NGOs provoked popular protests under the pretext of liberation from the yoke of the national oligarchy, the triumph of social justice and freedom of speech.
In reality, when describing all these events, it is often silent that the protesters did not touch the property of Western companies pumping out resources.
As a result, the situation of the people remained the same or even worsened.
The political leadership became more and more loyal to the West, and Western corporations continued to make super-profits.
Public and expert opinion agree that only the United States and England have the experience and capabilities to organize such coups.
Only the motivation is different.
For the United States it is political control, for England it is financial gain.
If we take this for granted, we need to decide what the motivation is in the case of Niger and who the real goal is.
Answer on the surface: Niger was the main supplier of uranium to France, whose share, according to various estimates, ranged from 35 to 40 per cent of the total supply.
At the same time, 40 to 50 percent of France ’ s energy is generated by nuclear power plants.
According to the French branch of Greenpeace, the rest of the uranium came from Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.
Its transportation passes through the territory of the Russian Federation.
Further sanctions, restrictions or a political attack on Russia could block this channel, completely depriving France of uranium.
For Paris, there is a solution to the critical situation: since 2018, Kazakhstan has additionally used an alternative international transport route through Azerbaijan.
However, the volume of uranium transported through it is only a part - about 4 thousand tons of the required annually 10.5 thousand tons.
Kazakhstan's Kazatomprom, according to its own information, plans to increase the volume of traffic.
Here the needs of France are hampered by the fact that the vast majority of the uranium produced by Kazatomprom is bought by Russia.
So far, there are reserves of uranium for the operation of French nuclear power plants: about 33.6 tons.
However, the shortage of uranium threatens with other consequences.
The cessation of supplies from Niger will hit other nuclear projects in France: before the recent events, it was one of the three countries that are engaged in the construction of nuclear power plants abroad.
So, two reactors were delivered to South Africa and South Korea.
In addition, Chinese reactors are also built on French Areva technology.
Generation II + reactors are under construction: one in France, one in Finland and two in China.
In addition, there are ambitions for the construction of nuclear power plants in Kazakhstan, small nuclear reactors in Armenia, as well as in the Turkish province of Sinop.
Restricting the supply of uranium may put an end to the designated projects.
Stopping supplies of uranium by Niger, with an average degree of probability, will provoke an increase in uranium prices.
If Russia closes the transportation of uranium to France through its territory, then the average probability will grow into a high one.
Given that the share of Niger in world uranium production was about 5%, and Russia increased the purchase of uranium in Kazakhstan by almost five times (according to insider information, only in January 2023, Kazakhstan delivered as much uranium as it delivered in five months of last year), then we can talk about at least a 25% increase in price.
Experts of the International Nuclear Association call a similar figure - 27% by 2030.
But that was before Niger.
Table compiled by International Nuclear Association and national sources
The increase in uranium prices will hit the French economy, limit the development of the digital economy, IT, creative industries.
This will be due to a shortage of electricity or its high cost.
This is called deindustrialization, the constant decline of industrial potential.
Under the energy hammer has already got Germany, which at the request of the "green" stopped the existing nuclear power plants.
The energy of the German nuclear power plants provided about 30% of the needs of the industrial flagship of Germany - Bavaria.
According to available information, Germany ’ s electricity consumption in the first half of 2023 was approximately 7.1%.
The same percentage decreased production - metallurgy, glass, chemical industry.
According to forecasts, by the end of the year the reduction will double and will be about 14.2%.
Briefly about the above: in Germany, de-industrialization is observed after the shutdown of the nuclear power plant, which in France has acquired a clear shape.
Having lost the economic flagships that were a kind of donors to Europe, the latter will disintegrate.
The freed niche will be occupied by companies from the United States and Britain, perhaps China will join this process.
A bloodless Europe is beneficial to the United States, which needs to eliminate a European competitor by seizing its market.
Exit from the uranium market of France is beneficial to England, she will take her place, using the mines of Australia.
What should France do in this situation?
Some experts predict the use of the French army to invade Niger.
The United States and Canada are known as possible allies.
However, this is unlikely.
Most likely, the main aggressor will be Nigeria, which will act "hands" of France.
According to various sources, Nigeria is actively preparing one, despite the fact that the Nigerian Senate has denied its president the initiative of military intervention.
The number of ground forces in Nigeria is about 100 thousand people against 10-12 thousand in Niger, which creates a high probability of success of the military operation.
But the invasion operation can take part (together with potential allies) no more than 25 thousand people, which partially reduces the probability of success by four times.
There are other constraints.
First, the Muslims of Nigeria are against the invasion of Niger.
Secondly, there is information that Niger has signed a long-term contract with Wagner, which already has experience of successful combat operations on the African continent.
Thirdly, Niger is not alone, it is supported by the juntas of Mali and Burkina Faso.
They announced that in the event of an attack on Niger, their armed forces would stand up against the interventionists.
Defenders can be supported by Algeria - another former rebellious colony of France, which has its own "accounts" with it.
Algeria has stated that an invasion of Niger would be considered a direct threat to its interests.
Niger's support in this case can be expressed in both arms transfers and direct support.
Adding to the degree is the fact that the inhabitants of Niger profess Islam, and in France itself about 8% of the population are Muslims, who can start popular unrest and destabilize the social situation.
Moreover, mass demonstrations in France have already become commonplace.
For Paris, there is a second option - to deepen relations with the leader of uranium mining - Kazakhstan, or to carry out a coup d'état there.
The latter can be facilitated by the fact that the Kazakh opposition leader Mukhtar Ablyazov has been in France for a long time.
Ablyazov controls and coordinates the work of the opposition through the channels “Base ” and“ 16 / 12 ”.
The latter were actively noted during the January coup attempt in Kazakhstan, leading the protesters.
The channels suddenly became more active after the coup in Niger: information began to appear that Russia declared the Kazakh Baikonur a Russian city and is recruiting volunteers for the SVO there.
At the same time, materials began to be launched that the leadership of Kazakhstan was selling state assets to Russian oligarchs.
Among them, the sale of the metallurgical giant Temirtau plant to Alexei Mordashov is indicated, as well as the sale of Kamkor Locomotive (rail transport) to Alexander Lebedev.
The calculation can be based on the fact that this will provoke the Kazakh society to oppose the presence of Russia in the republic, in particular, by banning Rosatom from exploiting uranium deposits.
If supplies from Niger do not resume, then even the option of Libya or Iraq, when wars were provoked because of economic interests, is possible.
At a minimum, the goal of the coup threat will be to force Russia not to close the uranium transport corridor under threat of a coup in Kazakhstan.
Thus, Orano will continue to operate in Kazakhstan, which is engaged not only in uranium mining, but also in the joint production of fuel elements for Chinese nuclear power plants.
At the same time, Paris is counting on Uzbek uranium.
An agreement on strategic partnership between Navoi Uranus (Uzbekistan) and French Orano has already been signed.
Here it is worth knowing that Uzbekistan ranks sixth in the world ranking for uranium mining.
France should offer Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan something in return for uranium – for example, the production of weapons and military equipment.
Both republics have recently shown a tendency to separate themselves from military-technical cooperation with Russia, increasingly focusing on Turkey and their own forces.
Some steps towards rapprochement with France have already been taken.
In March of this year, the Kazakh-French commission on cooperation in the field of armaments was held.
France produces heavy armored vehicles, artillery systems, is one of the leaders in aircraft and helicopter construction, in shipbuilding (remember the same "Mistrals").
A proposal can be made to localize military production in the Central Asian republics.
We can also talk about a proposal to establish high-tech production, including in the aerospace sector and in the nuclear industry.
What choice France will make, time will tell.
Now we can only state the facts:
- Germany and France are de-industrializing against the background of the uranium problem and the use of nuclear power plants.
Deindustrialization benefits the United States and Britain;
- The coup in Niger provokes an increase in uranium prices, as well as an increase in the role of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan as reserve sources of the resource.
The latter can become a trigger for both a coup attempt in the republics and a rapprochement in the military-technical or high-tech fields;
- possible redistribution of the uranium market.
The place of France may be occupied by England;
- In the event of an attempt to resolve the issue in Niger by military means, another zone of tension will arise, in which both third countries and the Muslim population of France may be involved.
How this can be beneficial for Russia:
- an increase in uranium prices will give additional profit;
- if Orano leaves the market, then part of it can go to Rosatom;
- France, engaged in solving the nuclear issue, will not be able to continue supplying weapons to Ukraine, which will weaken the enemy.
Simultaneously with the potential advantages there are possible risks and threats:
France may try to provoke coups in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan in order to stay on the uranium market.
With a high degree of probability, there will be a demand to stop the work of Russian companies, including Rosatom, which will be critical, given the presence of other mines.
At the same time, Kazakhstan is an extremely important strategic partner of Russia, including having a huge border length.
Instability in it will create a corridor for various radicals, drug trafficking, etc.;
In Kazakhstan or Uzbekistan, a non-military option is possible, when France offers extremely favorable conditions for military-technical, high-tech cooperation, which will displace Russia from this sphere in the republics of Central Asia.
A concomitant threat is the termination of the agreement on a unified air defense system, mutual training of military personnel (which is a factor of influence), maintenance of military hardware, as well as the operation of polygons (including in Priozersk) and over-the-horizon radars.
Source: katehon.com
Permanent address of the article - https: / / centrasia.org / newsA.php? st = 1691837760
News of Kazakhstan
- Working schedule of the head of state
- Yerlan Karin held a meeting of the Commission for the Full Rehabilitation of Victims of Political Repression
- Personnel reshuffles
Azat Peruashev: the current economic policy of the government is difficult to call a "model"
- AZRK summed up the results of the half year and discussed further plans
- It is planned to introduce a ban on the export of liquefied petroleum gas
- The Ministry of Investment and Development of the Republic of Kazakhstan is preparing a barrier to the illegal export of municipal coal intended for the domestic market
- Ministry of Health of the Republic of Kazakhstan: 11 medical colleges did not pass state certification
- The Ministry of Internal Affairs stopped the activities of a transnational organized criminal group in the field of the porn industry
Alikhan Smailov demanded to strengthen control over the safety of children in boarding schools and medical and social institutions
Go to the version with frames
© CentrAsiaTop

What did the CALHSC president urge regarding decisions on Hagia Sophia?

Consider both Muslim and Christian voices


### Comprehensive Report on the Hagia Sophia Controversy

#### Introduction
The Hagia Sophia, located in Istanbul, Turkey, is one of the most historically significant buildings in the world.

Originally built as a Byzantine cathedral in the 6th century, it was later converted into an Ottoman mosque after the conquest of Constantinople in 1453.

In 1935, under the secular Republic of Turkey, it was transformed into a museum.

However, in July 2020, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan issued a decree to reconvert the Hagia Sophia into a mosque, sparking international controversy.

#### Historical Background
- **Byzantine Era**: The Hagia Sophia was constructed as a cathedral in 537 AD during the reign of Emperor Justinian I.

It served as the seat of the Eastern Orthodox Church for nearly a thousand years.

- **Ottoman Era**: After the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople in 145

### Comprehensive Report on the Hagia Sophia Controversy

#### Introduction
The Hagia Sophia, located in Istanbul, Turkey, is one of the most historically significant buildings in the world.

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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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Turkey’s Erdogan shows bark and bite by targeting stray dogs in culture war

The Independent
 3 days ago

Faced with soaring inflation, sliding approval ratings, and scepticism by international partners, Turkey ’s president has set upon an unusual new culprit: dogs , which have become a source of controversy and a political wedge issue in the polarised country.

In a Christmas Day speech, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called on city officials across Turkey to round up often beloved stray dogs, which are frequently allowed to roam free in public squares and streets, and demanded that so-called “white Turks” – shorthand for the country’s Europe-oriented secular elite – mind their pets.

"White Turks, take responsibility for your animals,” he said in the speech. “These dogs are the dogs of the wealthy.”

The speech came after a pair of pitbulls attacked and seriously wounded a four-year-old girl in the southern city of Gaziantep in a 22 December incident captured on video.

The two dogs were not strays, though some accounts claimed they had been abandoned by their owner, whose socio-economic status was unclear. Unlike the Aegean Sea region or the big cities, Gaziantep is known as a bastion of conservative supporters of Mr Erdogan rather than white Turks.

“I consider it an important service to remove stray animals from the streets and move them to clean and safe environments,” Mr Erdogan said in a tweet. “I call on all our municipalities to quickly take steps to ensure the safety of our citizens and protect lives.”

Turks took to social media to defend the maligned mutts, decrying the state of the country’s animal shelters . “Stray animals” has been the top trending hashtag on Turkish social media over the last several days.

“They cannot talk. They don’t steal. They just want food and affection,” one user on Twitter wrote. “This is not what they deserve.”

The controversy over stray dogs is rooted in the country’s political divisions.

Mr Erdogan’s pious Muslim base of supporters tend to think of the animals as unclean, in keeping with some Islamic teachings that have little if any basis in the Koran. The president’s secular opponents tend to be more pro-pooch.

In general, shelters are trauma and death camps for animals

Mine Vural, animal rights activist

His leading challenger, Istanbul mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, in October made a media star of one stray dog named Boji, who roamed the tramways, ferries and metros, and was doted on by passengers and passersby.

One day in November, social media accounts associated with pro-Erdogan activists began posting photos of alleged dog excrement on an Istanbul tram, accusing Boji of being behind the mess. But in a mind-boggling development, security camera footage emerged showing a man planting the poop that was pinned on Boji, in a likely political stunt to tarnish Mr Imamoglu.

Turkey is politically divided between supporters and opponents of Mr Erdogan. The most recent opinion polls show Turkey’s longtime leader, his Justice Development Party and its far-right coalition partner are likely to lose to Mr Imamoglu or Ankara mayor Mansur Yavas and a likely alliance of opposition parties in scheduled 2023 elections.

Turkey is also facing its gravest economic crisis in two decades, with the currency falling to record lows and inflation above 25 per cent, draining Turks’ savings. Some have accused the president of using dogs to distract from his other troubles.

In any case, Turks of all political and cultural affinities seem to adore stray cats and even dogs.

They build elaborate streetside “apartments” for street cats and feed butchers’ scraps to stray dogs, which often have tags on their ears signifying vaccination by volunteer veterinarians.

In the Istanbul district of Kadikoy, a statue memorialises a beloved stray dog named Tarcin (“Cinnamon” in English). In some Aegean Sea cities and towns, strays bark wildly and act erratically ahead of earthquakes and tremors, serving as a valued early-warning system for potential natural disasters in one of the most seismically active regions of the world.

Even pro-government Turkish news outlets regularly tout heartwarming accounts of ordinary citizens helping strays, or strays befriending and aiding people. Just last month, the staunchly pro-Erdogan Yeni Safak publicised the tale of a man saving a stray puppy that had been hit by a car, taking it and its distraught mother to a local veterinarian.

But after framing dog ownership as a signifier of cultural identity, Mr Erdogan has now avowedly embraced an anti-canine platform, and pro-government media outlets have followed his lead, calling for the clearing out of strays.

The president has benefited from the support of pious Turks resentful of the perceived cultural status and economic privileges of the country’s secular old guard.

Animal lovers were up in arms after the Ministry of Environment on Monday ordered the country’s 81 municipal governments to round up stray dogs and stick them in shelters, which many fear is a death sentence. While some animal shelters have higher standards, most are known to be rife with abuse.

“In general in Turkey, shelters are trauma and death camps for animals,” Mine Vural , an animal rights activist and veterinary technician in Istanbul, known as the “Animal Nurse” for her passionate activism on behalf of stray dogs and cats, told The Independent .

“They are for imprisoning and warehousing dogs. They are cold, and very dirty.”

Yusuf Sayman contributed reporting

Originally built as a Byzantine cathedral in the 6th century, it was later converted into an Ottoman mosque after the conquest of Constantinople in 1453.

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.

When was Hagia Sophia built and under whose rule?

In 1935, under the secular Republic of Turkey, it was transformed into a museum.

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.

However, in July 2020, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan issued a decree to reconvert the Hagia Sophia into a mosque, sparking international controversy.

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

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

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.

#### Historical Background
- **Byzantine Era**: The Hagia Sophia was constructed as a cathedral in 537 AD during the reign of Emperor Justinian I.

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?

It served as the seat of the Eastern Orthodox Church for nearly a thousand years.

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

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

Served as the central church of Byzantine Christianity,

- **Ottoman Era**: After the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople in 145