Hagia Sophia: Erdogan recites Koran at grand reopening of historic Istanbul landmark as mosque

Despite coronavirus fears, thousands flood ancient Byzantine site to take part in religious ceremony

Wearing a prayer cap, Turkey's president Recep Tayyip Erdogan recited verses from the Koran as the country reopened the famous Hagia Sophia as a mosque to huge crowds on Friday.

It was the first Islamic service held on the Muslim sabbath inside the 1,483-year-old former cathedral in nearly nine decades. But the sight of Mr Erdogan leading the prayer stunned observers, with some describing it as yet another blow to Turkey's secular republican system.

"In practice what we’ve seen here is the fusion of religious leadership and political leadership," said Kadri Gursel, an analyst in Istanbul. "It is the transgressing of borders between the political and religious leadership, and the embodiment of the two in one person. It’s a historical moment; no one can deny it."

Following Mr Erdogan's recitation, the head of Turkey's religious affairs ministry, Ali Erbas, took to the pulpit to deliver a sermon which touched on themes of Muslim victimisation.

"What could be more crestfallen than a mosque, the minarets of which are silent, the garden of which is deserted, the dome of which is mute, and the garden of which is lonely?" he said.

"Due to the hostility to Islam that rises each passing day, there are mosques in various parts of the world today that are attacked, closed by force, and even bombed and destroyed," he said. Hundreds of millions of Muslims are facing oppression... We as believers who regard the meaning of Hagia Sophia as a lofty cause and sacred entrustment need to work to ensure that compassion, tolerance, peace, tranquillity, and benevolence prevail all around the world."

Istanbul’s Hagia Sophia had been officially a museum until two weeks ago when Mr Erdogan redesignated it a Muslim house of worship following a court decision. The move was controversial, potentially damaging an institution that was seen as a symbol of interfaith harmony between Muslims and Christians and a nod to the secular legacy of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, founder of modern Turkey.

But the move proved popular among supporters of Mr Erdogan and his Islamist-rooted Justice and Development Party as well as strident Turkish nationalists. Hundreds of pious Turks could be seen rushing towards the Hagia Sophia to take part in Friday’s ceremony, some chanting “God is great”.

Turkish media reported thousands of worshippers arriving from around the country to witness the prayers, with officials beseeching potential visitors to stay away from the area to avoid overcrowding around the leafy square and ancient quarters near the Hagia Sophia amid the coronavirus pandemic. Turkey continues to report hundreds of new infections daily, adding to a total caseload approaching a quarter of a million.

The Hagia Sophia, considered among the most cherished masterpieces of Byzantine-era architecture, was converted into a mosque following the 16th-century Ottoman conquest of the city that was then Constantinople. Its status as a museum has long irked pious Turks alienated by the country’s secularist governments.

“Today is the day when this imposition and this pressure has ended,” pro-government columnist Ibrahim Karagul wrote in the daily newspaper Yeni Safak. “The victory is ours and we are a nation which is used to having victories. The parenthesis of the last century when we were doomed with defeats is closed.”

Turkish pro-government voices mocked opposition leaders for not attending the prayer ceremony. But Istanbul mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, of the Republican People’s Party (CHP), said that he was not invited. Kemal Kılıcdaroglu, chairman of the CHP, rejected an invitation to attend the ceremony.

Mr Gursel described the ceremony, which coincided with the anniversary of the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne that outlined the contours of modern Turkey, as a political move intended to rejuvenate the AKP's base of supporters at a time of multiple overlapping crises.

"We see today an Erdogan exhausted and deprived of instruments offering him better positioning and better terrain to generate legitimacy," he said. "Turkey's economy is in shambles. The future is grim. Its foreign policy is in crisis, Its society is in crisis. Mr Erdogan is out of capacity to solve any of the existing crises."

Turkish officials have said the Hagia Sophia, a major tourism draw, would continue to be open to visitors of all faiths, and that entrance fees would be lifted. For prayer services, Turkish religious authorities have covered up Christian religious icons showing human imagery considered idolatrous in the Sunni sect of Islam. There are, however, plans to allow them to be visible except for during five daily prayer times.

Turquoise prayer rugs have also been installed as part of an ongoing renovation.

Some historical preservationists have expressed concern. “It appears that the authorities have chosen to instal a (presumably retractable) curtain mechanism to conceal the mosaics of Virgin and Child on the apse, and the Archangel Gabriel,” wrote Washington-based Turkey scholar Tugba Tanyeri-Erdemir, voicing concern about the mere two-week period used to prepare the building for prayers.

“The choice of materials for the curtain is crucial. Is the fabric concealing Hagia Sophia's mosaics fire retardant? Is it evaluated for pest control and dust accumulation?” she wrote on Twitter. “When we are dealing with ancient buildings we need to carefully assess all risk factors.”