A commemoration for Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was held at Hagia Sophia, as announced by Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
Contrary to initial reports, the Turkish president did not attend the ceremony, which followed the regular Friday prayers.
In addition to Haniyeh’s funeral in Doha, a symbolic ceremony was held at Hagia Sophia in Constantinople, attended by thousands.
President of Religious Affairs Erbaş led the funeral prayer for Haniyeh at Hagia Sophia in absentia. Noting that the Quran promises heavenly rewards to those who strive for goodness and reform, while those who pursue oppression, injustice, and corruption face severe punishment, Erbaş said: “Today we are living in a time when cruelty and all kinds of evil are enveloping the world. We are experiencing a time when morality and law are absent, the cries of the oppressed rise to the heavens, and nature is destroyed.”
“We are witnessing the brutality of oppressors and tyrants who are turning the world into hell. We are witnessing an era of oppression in which murderers and invaders are brutally slaughtering children, infants, women, the elderly, and the innocent in every weak country, especially in Gaza and Palestine,” he continued, according to the Turkish news agency Anadolu.
According to Anadolu, a prayer for Haniyeh and all Palestinians was held after the funeral prayer, which was led in absentia by the Deputy President for Religious Affairs Burhan İşliçegen.
Deputy Interior Minister Mehmet Aktaş, AK Party Vice President Ömer İleri, AK Party Secretary General Fatih Şahin, Memur Sen President Ali Yalçın, representatives of non-governmental organizations, and many citizens were among those who attended.
Citizens gathered at July 15 Martyrs Square in Ümraniye to hold a funeral in absentia for Ismail Haniyeh before the funeral prayer.
Source: protothema.gr
