Turkey: The "liberation" of Hagia Sophia will help to "liberate" Al-Aqsa
Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem. Photo: Planet of Hotels
The Chairman of the Turkish National Assembly, Numan Kurtulmuş, stated that the conversion of Hagia Sophia into a mosque should serve as a precursor to the liberation of the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, according to Ortodox Times.
He emphasized that this is about "ensuring and guiding a new, fair global system".
According to Kurtulmuş, this objective is encapsulated in a statement by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan: “Just as we reopened Hagia Sophia after years of hope, prayer, and longing, the reopening of Hagia Sophia, the liberation of Hagia Sophia, will pave the way for the liberation of Al Aqsa. It will serve as a harbinger of the freedom of the Al Aqsa Mosque.”
The Al-Aqsa Mosque, which Muslims consider the third holiest site in Islam after Mecca and Medina, is located on a hill in the Old City of Jerusalem, known to Jews as the Temple Mount, and to Muslims worldwide as al-Haram al-Sharif, or the Noble Sanctuary.
As reported by the UOJ, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan stated that the decision to convert the Hagia Sophia from a museum into a mosque is a symbol of the Turkish era.
Read also
DESS congratulates Ukrainians on Passover
DESS has published an address in which it compared the biblical Exodus with the modern path of the people toward freedom and peace.
Amsterdam: Zelensky attacks UOC because he doesn't tolerate idependent thought
An international human rights defender stated that the Kyiv authorities are pursuing the goal of turning religion into a government department.
In Jerusalem, Jewish believers banned from visiting Western Wall during Passover
Israeli police announced restrictions for Jewish holidays.
OCU: Filaret did not want UOC-KP to exist after his death
The OCU insists that Filaret wanted the Kyiv Patriarchate to cease to exist after his death.
UOC primate blesses vehicles for evacuating the wounded from the front
His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry performed the rite of blessing for nine vehicles purchased with donations from faithful in Ukraine and the Czech Republic.
Lawyer warns of planned seizure of UOC Ascension Church in Kyiv
The head of the religious community of the Holy Ascension Church in Demiivka has been unlawfully replaced, according to a lawyer.