President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan attended the Ground-breaking Ceremony of the Barbaros Hayrettin Pasha Mosque in Levent.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, Erdoğan wished God's mercy upon the workers who lost their lives in the explosion that occurred in the fireworks factory in Hendek district of Sakarya, and speedy recovery to the injured workers, and wished God’s protection upon the country and the nation against any disaster.
“Turkey offers everyone the opportunity to worship”
“Every mosque rising with different architectural styles in different regions of the world is a monument, which calls to the sky that everywhere they are located is a Muslim homeland. Istanbul is among the richest cities of the world with Hagia Sophia that has been transformed into a masjid after the conquest by Sultan Mehmet the Conqueror and its mosques built by Sultans in succession within centuries. No one has the right and authority to meddle with our places of worship, just as we do not meddle with the places of worship in other countries of the world that serve their own citizens. Turkey is a country that offers worship facilities to its citizens of every religion, every belief, and every spirit. Perhaps my citizens who are watching us right now will be hearing this for the first time. There are nearly 435 churches and synagogues that are currently open to worship in our country. In fact, as in the example of the Iron Church in Balat that has been restored, we have supported the new churches in our country, and we have done that directly from the state budget.”
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan continued his speech as follows:
“The efforts aimed at criticizing such a country through its places of worship mean turning your back to the truths. The accusations against our country concerning Hagia Sophia refer to a direct attack on our sovereignty rights. However, we are going through a period in which mosques and places of worship of people from other religions are attacked all over the world. Millions of people are subjected to all kinds of pressure, including the attempts against their lives, only because of their religious beliefs. This is exactly the point that must be considered and against which precautions must be taken. We will continue to protect the rights and remedies of Muslims, who are the dominant faith group in our country and also of people of other religions. We also consider the new mosques that we are constructing as our contributions to the common civilization of humanity.”
"We will complete our mosque quickly and put it into service of entire Istanbul and all Muslims"
Recalling that they had returned from Qatar the previous day, Erdoğan said, “God willing, we will complete our mosque quickly and put it into service of the region, entire Istanbul and all Muslims as soon as possible.”
Following the prayer said by President of Religious Affairs Ali Erbaş, President Erdoğan pressed the button to pour concrete into the construction site along with Vice President Fuat Oktay, Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Adil Karaismailoğlu, Minister of Treasury and Finance Berat Albayrak, Minister of Environment and Urbanization Murat Kurum, President of Religious Affairs Erbaş, AK Party Deputy Chairperson Çiğdem Karaaslan, Governor of Central Bank Murat Uysal, Chairman of Barbaros Hayrettin Pasha Mosque Association Ergin Külünk, Contractor Company Representative Abdülkadir Kart and other officials.
The ceremony was also attended by Director of Communications Fahrettin Altun, Presidential Spokesperson İbrahim Kalın, and AK Party Istanbul Provincial Chair Bayram Şenocak.
