Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2025 All Rights Reserved

Bulgaria reacts with regret to Turkey's decision to convert Hagia Sophia in Istanbul back into mosque

Hagia Sophia in Istanbul
Photo: EPA/BGNES

"We join the calls of the international community to preserve the existing access to the monument, given its history and its symbolic significance for Christianity and Islam. We expect the universal historical value of the monument to be preserved as part of the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage," reads a text published on the website of Bulgaria's Ministry of Foreign Affairs regarding the change of status of the historic house of worship Hagia Sophia in Turkey's capital Istanbul. 

Yesterday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan signed a decree stipulating that the Hagia Sophia building, which currently operates as a museum and is one of the iconic sites of the Turkish capital, would be returned under the auspices of the religion service and converted back into a mosque. 



Последвайте ни и в Google News Showcase, за да научите най-важното от деня!
Listen to the daily news from Bulgaria presented in "Bulgaria Today" podcast, available in Spotify.

More from category

Bulgaria has asked to withdraw its request to the EC for the second payment under the Recovery and Resilience Plan

Bulgaria has asked to withdraw its request to the European Commission for the second payment under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan, the Commission confirmed to BNR. The request was submitted yesterday following coordination with the..

published on 4/18/25 1:04 PM

Border Police: Traffic on the Danube Bridge in Ruse is limited to one lane

Border Police remind that major repairs are underway on the Bulgarian section of the Danube Bridge in Ruse, and because of this, a temporary traffic organization has been implemented. Traffic is in one lane with a regulated flow, controlled by the..

published on 4/18/25 10:41 AM

Temperatures will drop, it will rain over Western and Central Bulgaria on Friday

On Friday, the minimum temperatures in Bulgaria will be from 7 to 12°C. In Sofia, it will be around 10°C. During the day, the cloudiness over the western and central regions will be broken and decrease to mostly sunny spells. After lunch, clouds will..

published on 4/17/25 7:25 PM