Along with other businesses, Mevlana Mosque in Berlin was searched by police on Oct. 21 during dawn prayers. The mosque — a well-known establishment in the heart of Berlin’s Kreuzberg district — belongs to the Turkish-Islamist Milli Gorus (National View) movement, which is a member of the Islamist Federation and affiliated with the AKP. The reason for the search was the allegation that the mosque and other businesses are involved in fraud, including illegally receiving 70,000 Euros (about $83,000) from the German government for COVID-19 emergency aid. This aid is reserved for businesses that have suffered financial losses due to the pandemic.
In angry outbursts, AKP officials say there was no justification for police to enter the mosque. For example, Diyanet (the Religious Affairs Directorate) condemned the search both from its official website and the director’s Twitter account. Diyanet’s director, Ali Erbas, tweeted that “this kind of discriminatory and disrespectful behavior against Muslims cannot be accepted for any reason.”
On Oct. 23, Erdogan reacted first on Twitter, posting a series of tweets strongly condemning the police raid at Mevlana Mosque. Erdogan claimed the raid was “obviously nourished by racism and Islamophobia, totally flouting freedom of belief, and bringing Europe closer to the darkness of the Middle Ages.” Erdogan and his close associates took on social media, portraying the mosque search as an Islamophobic and racist move and a direct attack against freedoms. Their social media and television appearances loudly demanded “respect for Muslim sensitivities and holy values.”
Yet respect for religious beliefs and observation is not a guaranteed right in Turkey — not even for Muslims. For example, in 2012, Kurdish Muslims holding a prayer session in Yuksekova were subjected to police brutality. Police used water cannons and tear gas on civilians during Friday prayers. Another example of Turkey’s disrespect for religious freedoms would be regular police raids of Alevi communities' prayer houses and the government’s audacity not to recognize these gathering sites as religious institutions. The AKP’s legacy in erasing Turkey’s Christian past needs scrutiny as well.
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