Hundreds of people demanded that the historic Istanbul Hagia Sophia museum be converted into a mosque during a rally in Istanbul on May 24.
People gathered outside Istanbul’s Hagia Sophia, in the historical Sultanahmet district, with some carrying signs that read: “Hagia Sophia needs to be reopened as a mosque,” and “Let our lives be sacrificed for Islam.”
The protest was led by many Turkish nongovernmental organizations, including the Humanitarian Relief Foundation (İHH).
Designed as a Christian basilica in the sixth century by Anthemios of Tralles and Isidorus of Miletus, Hagia Sophia is now a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Hagia Sophia remained a center of Orthodox Christianity until 1453, when the city was conquered by Ottoman Turks under Sultan Mehmed II, known as the Conqueror of Istanbul. After 916 years of service as a church, he ordered Hagia Sophia to become a “victory mosque,” symbolizing the Muslim conquest. The mosaics of the church were covered with plaster and were successfully restored in the 20th century.
Hagia Sophia was used as a mosque for 482 years. Following the Ottoman Empire’s collapse, it was converted into a museum by republican officials in 1935.
i’d say 10s of thousands looking at the video

Brian says
Islam is a murderous, fascist, supremacist ideology with a veneer of religion that needs to be banned in the West and all mosques torn down…Never forget what the Turkish prime minister said…
“The mosques are our barracks, the domes our helmets, the minarets our bayonets and the faithful our soldiers…”
―Recep Tayyip Erdogan
mortimer says
I don’t believe ‘non-governmental’…it was stage-managed by Erdogan.
Januk36 says
Probably and nonetheless not an impressive number.
The same crowd from different angles is deceiving. Hardly 10’000 in a citiy of almost 15 millions.
Compare that to thousands of anti Erdogan protesters of turkish origin in Cologne (1 million) in Germany last year.
(http://www.welt.de/politik/deutschland/article128372757/Fuer-eine-Tuerkei-ohne-Tayyip.html)
Richie says
If it doesn’t happen, Muslims will destroy the building , and even if that happens, muslims will cry victim
Islam and destruction go hand in hand. A shame western Christians have grown so weak- centuries past, Christians would have formed armies to drive back the invading islamic hoardes
Richie says
Don’t be surprised if the current Pope (who is a leftist and a communist) calls for the Hagia Sophia to be converted into a demonic mosque.
Maria says
i bet the pope will even kiss the koran in side hagia sophia if it becomes a mosque
Peggy says
The Pope a Comminist? How did that happen?
Angemon says
So many “misunderstanders of islam” in a land who, less than 100 years ago, was the center of power in the “islamic world” (occupied christian lands)…
Richie says
funny how the fact that nearlly all of the so called Islamic world is built on Christian, Buddist and Hindu lands that Muslims invaded is always brushed aside by leftists and their media.
To face such reality would go against the leftist narrative that muslims are the victims and the ones being oppressed
Saleem Smith says
I am having a very hard time logging on to JW.
In fact i cannot log on directly to the home page.
When I try it says – ‘You are being re-directed.’
I am only able to log on to individual articles
Anybody else having this problem??
Do you have any info about this, Marc??
Cheers, thanks, Saleem
marc says
if this doesnt help: http://freespeechdefense.net/2015/05/browser-issues-with-javascript-ddos-protection/
email me, and i’ll take a look
Porky The Crusader says
You have a virus, i have seen that before,lol
marc says
he doesn’t have a virus, i checked, it’s an incompatibility with IE11 and our DDoS protection is my guess.
Westman says
From the aerial view one gets the strangest sensation of looking at an invading ant colony. There was a feeling one should reach for:
http://cdn.spectrumbrands.com/~/media/Black%20Flag/images/product/891549110684.ashx
But it’s more likely that this is what will reach for the colony:
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:AQMI_Flag.svg
thelmalou says
Cool. They can then get rid of this ugly thing:
https://www.google.com/search?q=hagia+sophia+mosaic+holy+family&espv=2&biw=1307&bih=679&tbm=isch&imgil=8c3hEhYvRw1A_M%253A%253Bn
Kakodaemon says
If you dislike ancient sacred art so much, Thelmalou, why don’t you join up with Islamic State over in Syria, and pick up a jackhammer yourself?
Avenger says
You think the Hagia Sofia is ugly?
Then you must like the more phallus shaped structures like gothic cathedrals or minarets.
Prinz Eugen says
When will congress DEMAND that Turkey be booted out of NATO? Those ragheads have attacked Europe many times and it is time that Europeans returned the favor. Restore Constantinople!
End jihad forever!
John Sobieski says
So Turkey is converting Churches to Mosques at a record rate and the Orthodox Christian Hagia Sophia church will be next…while the u.s. just helped Turkey celebrate the opening of their $100,000,000 mosque complex for proselytizing in Lanham MD No wonder Islam see western civilization as now be a soft target for jihad.