The Hagia Sophia hosted its first Friday prayers since the controversial decision to convert it from a secular space back into a mosque. Earlier this month, UNESCO said it 'deeply regrets' Turkey's decision to do so.
Its architecture reflects its unique status with the famous dome ringed by minarets. Inside, intricate mosaics and art depict both Christian and Muslim symbols. But after a court revoked the Hagia Sophia's status as a museum earlier this month, Erdogan immediately ordered the mosque conversion.
In brief interviews in the area, several people mentioned Mehmet the Conqueror, who originally ordered the conversion of the Hagia Sophia from a Byzantine church to a mosque after the Ottoman Empire seized the city of Constantinople in 1453.
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