Since 1934, Turkey's Hagia Sophia has been a museum. Constructed more than 1,500 years ago, the domed structure has been a popular tourist site as well as a historically rich structure. Recently however, a Turkish court has revoked the Hagia Sophia's museum status.
It began as a Greek Orthodox cathedral, before being converted into a mosque after the Ottoman conquest in 1453. In 1934 it became a museum and is now a UNESCO World Heritage site.
While initial reports had suggested that the government planned to convert the Hagia Sophia back in to a mosque, this now appears to have been confirmed.
The first prayers at Istanbul's Hagia Sophia will take place on July 24, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said. A Xinhua report quotes the President to confirm that it will be open for worshiping from the 24th with Friday prayers.
"Like all our mosques, the doors of Hagia Sophia will be wide open to locals and foreigners, Muslims and non-Muslims," he was quoted as saying.
Earlier on Friday, the Turkish State Council approved the conversion of the historic museum into a mosque. "It was concluded that the settlement deed allocated it as a mosque and its use outside this character is not possible legally," the Council said in its ruling. According to the council, the 1834 Cabinet decision to turn it into a museum "did not comply with laws."
In his address to the nation, Erdogan said that the country would welcome every view on this matter, "but the issue of what purpose the Hagia Sophia will be used for concerns Turkey's sovereign rights". Shortly after the Council's announcement, the first call to prayer was recited at Hagia Sophia and was broadcast on all of Turkey's main news channels, the BBC reported.
The cultural site's social media channels have now been taken down.
(With inputs from agencies)
