The Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations condemns Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s comment that his decision to turn Istanbul’s Hagia Sofia back into a mosque was a precursor to the “liberation” of the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.
“We are appalled by the incendiary and offensive statement made by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan… implying that he seeks to take control of the holy sites in Jerusalem’s Old City, which is home to the al-Aqsa Mosque,” the conference’s leaders say in a statement.
They add: “Furthermore, this outrageous rhetoric regarding the al-Aqsa Mosque can and has incited violence against Israel and its citizens — and will add to tensions in the region. We condemn it strongly and urge President Erdogan to recant his inflammatory words and actions.”
Jerusalem was under the authority of the Ottoman Empire, the forerunner of the Republic of Turkey, until 1917 when it was captured by the British during World War II. Erdogan, an Islamist, has frequently railed at Israel in regard to the Al-Aqsa Mosque.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, during a televised address to the nation in Istanbul, May 11, 2020. (Presidential Press Service via AP, Pool)
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