Arson Allegations in Jafari Mosque in Istanbul

A blaze roared last night at Muhammedi Mosque in Istanbul’s  Esenyurt district, damaging several facilities of the mosque including its library, pulpit (minbar) and the imam chamber. 

The incident took place around 2 am local time at a mosque used by Jafaris  - a school of jurisprudence of most Shia Muslims. 

According to various newspapers, unidentified individuals broke into the mosque by putting a leader from the back of mosque’s premisses. Putting the library and pulpit sections on fire, they ran away. Following a complaint, police and fire department rushed into the scene. 

Intervening immediately, firefighter teams extinguished the blaze which left damages inside the mosque.  

Claiming that they had been receiving threats and filed a complaint to the police, Hamza Aydın, the imam of the mosque, said the following: “They came and threatened us last week. They said that we were Jaferis and worshipping stones, and they would ruin our mosque. We filed to the police and received a statement. But nobody really paid attention to us. This is a dismal, this is a sin. No Muslim would do this.” (AS/BM)

* Photo credit: İslam Yakut / AA

* Click here to read the article in Turkish.