Erdogan recites Muslim prayer at Hagia Sophia
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan recites an Islamic prayer at Hagia Sophia in Istanbul on Saturday. Erdogan reportedly recited the Quran’s first verse, dedicating the prayer to the "souls of all who left us this work as inheritance, especially Istanbul’s conqueror," at the inauguration of an art festival at Turkey’s most-visited monument, a UNESCO world heritage site which is officially a museum. Greece has in the past protested over Quran readings in what used to be Christendom’s greatest cathedral, accusing Ankara of seeking to alter the secular character of the monument. [Kayhan Ozer/Presidential Palace/Handout via Reuters]
