Türkiye transforms another church into a mosque

Recep Tayyip Erdogan courted controversy on Monday when he presided over the formal conversion of an ancient Byzantine church – the Church of St. Savior in Chora, Istanbul, into a mosque drawing wide condemnation from Greece and Orthodox Catholics who criticized it as “a provocation for the international community as it distorts and affects its character as a UNESCO world heritage site.” 

Erdogan ignored persuasions from visiting Greek Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis who had urged the Turkish strongman to reverse the decision.

At a joint press conference in Ankara, Erdogan stated, “The Kariye Mosque [Church of St Saviour] remains open to all in its new identity. As I told the Prime Minister [Mitsotakis], we have opened our Kariye Mosque to worship and visitors after meticulous restoration work in accordance with the decision we took in 2020.“   

Mitsotakis expressed his dissatisfaction with the conversion, emphasising the importance of preserving the unique cultural value of the monument, listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Erdogan virtually opened the mosque to the excitement of the local Muslim population. He stated that the decision to convert the church was made in 2020 after meticulous restoration work. He stated that his government attaches great importance to protecting UNESCO cultural heritage properties and making them accessible to all. 

The conversion of the Chora church into a Muslim place of worship is the second since 2020 when the Turkish government converted Istanbul’s iconic Hagia Sophia church into a Mosque. 

The Chora church is renowned for its monumental mosaics and frescoes dating back to the 14th century. It had previously been converted into a mosque in the 16th century and served as a museum since 1958. The conversion of the Hagia Sophia and the Chora church into mosques is seen as part of Turkey’s Islamic-nationalist shift of power, and Erdogan’s attempt to consolidate conservative and religious support.