Hate Attack on Armenian Church in İstanbul

Click to read the article in Turkish / Kurdish

An unknown perpetrator on Friday (May 23) took out the cross on the gate of Surp Krikor Lusaroviç Armenian Church in Kuzguncuk, Üsküdar, on the Asian side İstanbul.

The police were notified of the incident and the cross was later put in place by the church administration, Agos newspaper reported.

Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) deputy Garo Paylan said in a tweet that "Attacks continue on our churches. The cross of our Surp Krikor Lusaroviç Armenian Church was removed and thrown away. Hate speech by the ruling power normalizes hate crimes."

In a written statement, the church administration said Kuzguncuk Mukhtar Ali Faik Kaptan notified it of the incident at 9.17 p.m. on May 23.

Looking through the security camera footage, Edvart Ayvazyan, the chair of the church foundation, found that a man came at around 7.20 p.m., looked at the security cameras for a while and then removed the cross, the church stated. The Mukhtar also watched the footage and notified the police of the incident.

Üsküdar Director of Security Mehmet Baykara and Üsküdar Security Bureau Chief Emin Aydos are working on the incident, it further noted.

Less than three weeks ago, Dznunt Surp Asdvadzadzni Church in Bakırköy district on the city's European side was also attacked. On May 8, a man attempted to set the church's gate on fire. He was detained by the police.

After the incident, MP Paylan submitted a parliaemntary question to the Minister of Interior, asking, "Do you think that the hate speech used by the President [Recep Tayyip Erdoğan] such as 'leftovers of the sword' plays any role in the hate attacks targeting minorities' places of worship?" (TP/VK)