آيا صوفيا: قراءة وتحليل للحجاج الإعلامي والديني

Abstract

Turkey’s Council of State, the highest Turkish administrative court, handed down its decision on July 10, 2020 regarding Hagia Sophia. The council reversed the monument’s status from a museum back into a mosque as from July 24, sparking heated debates between those in favor of the decision and those opposed. Opposition has not been restricted to non-Muslims, with many Muslims expressing their rejection of the decision in their personal as well as institutional capacities. Arguments and counterarguments have been put forward in support of both stances, but several historical facts, political objectives, and pieces of religious referential proof have been either ignored or not given adequate respect in this decision based on religious fervour. The author has highlighted the intense coverage of the decision by international mass media, officials, and official entities; with stances varying between decision-supporting/rejecting (Islamic) institutions. While several diplomatic statements have expressed concern and/or rejection, UNESCO has done all but threatened to reconsider the status of the World Heritage-listed site. Accordingly, an analytical objective approach is adopted towards the arguments and counterarguments put forward, including (1) a historical overview of the monument, (2) a referential religious accounting of the issue, (3) a review of arguments both for and against the decision, and (4) the legal and religious effect(s) of the decision.