Spiritual center for Muslim Turks in Greece converted to music school

Murat Reis Mosque is one of the rare Ottoman-era buildings that survived for centuries on the Greek island of Rhodes. Yet, the mosque, served as a center of faith for Muslims, joined the growing list of Ottoman heritage buildings misused by Greece. The mosque, known as 'külliye' among the local population (a complex including a mosque, a lodge and a cemetery of fallen Ottoman soldiers) fell victim to the hidden policy of Greece against its Ottoman past. Following Greece's independence, many Ottoman buildings were converted into military prisons, cinemas, provincial offices, hostels and storage units. The city's Tzisdaraki Mosque has also been repurposed as a ceramics museum. Konuk told Anadolu Agency (AA) on Monday that Murat Reis mosque was originally a cemetery for 'martyrs' or Ottoman soldiers who died during the conquest of the island by Ottoman forces in 1522 and later expanded to host the graves of Murat Pasha, a conqueror of Cyprus and a former shah of Iran. 'This is great damage to cultural heritage and a great disrespect to the religion of a community.' 'You cannot find any Ottoman-Turkish structure in their register, neither on the mainland nor in the islands. They register it as 'Muslim heritage.' It is either a 'Muslim fountain' or a 'Muslim library.' So, it can easily deny it has any Ottoman heritage,' she said. Konuk added that the mosque's cemetery was also damaged and some were stolen in the past decades. 'They did not repair any stones. Also, locals leave animal feed in the cemetery, drawing cats and dogs here. Stray cats and dogs leave their excrement on the graves sacred to Muslims, which is also an insult to people's faith,' she said.

Spiritual center for Muslim Turks in Greece converted to music school

An Ottoman-era building that served as a spiritual center for Muslim Turks in Greece was converted to a music school as Türkiye's neighbor seeks to erase its historical links to the country.