Erdogan signs decree turning Hagia Sophia into a mosque

submitted by Jacinda from jihadwatch.org

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[–]asterias 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (2 children)

Those Christians were not Turks, they were Greek, Armenian and Assyrian, which is why they were victims of genocide by the Turks (who considered Islam to be a vital part of their identity and non-Muslims were considered inferior). After the Turkification period many were obliged to use Turkish names and speak Turkish.

So there were (and still are) many Christians who have to keep their faith secret. There is also a small number of Turks who decided to become Christians and faced severe prosecutions, but this occured on an individual basis.

During the Ottoman period, the punishment for a Turk who decided to become a Christian was death, usually after torture.

EDIT: Here is an account of a family that had to flee Turkey:

https://greekcitytimes.com/2019/09/07/september6-7-1955-turkeys-kristallnacht/

[–][deleted] 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (1 child)

Wow. Thanks for the education. That is not a nice outcome, but very consistent with many things we still see today.