ISTANBUL
Setting mosques on fire is an act that does not belong to the Islamic thought and civilization, head of Turkey’s Religious Affairs Directorate said Friday after visiting a Shia mosque in Istanbul which was set alight in a suspected arson attack on Tuesday.
"In recent years, the damage inflicted on Islam by the ignorant followers of the religion have got ahead of the harms caused by its enemies," Mehmet Gormez said.
The apparently sectarian attack on the mosque -- which is mostly attended by the Shia Jaffari community -- came a week after the police were informed about threats against the mosque, according to Hamza Aydin, the imam of the mosque.
"This is not something that can be done by the ummah of Prophet Muhammad. Setting mosques on fire is an act completely foreign to Islam and the civilization that these lands foster," Gormez said.
He also recited an ayah of the Quran which says "Who are more unjust than those who prevent the name of Allah from being mentioned in His mosques and strive toward their destruction?"
The attack has sparked outrage across the country, with government officials condemning it and calling on the security forces to arrest the perpetrators as soon as possible.
"A young bearded man came to the mosque last week. He said 'You are a Jaffari, you worship stone. We will set this mosque on fire'," Aydin, the imam of the mosque, said. "We went to the police. They said they could not do anything without any video footage. It is a pity. Those who did this are not Muslims."
Police and firefighters rushed to the mosque but were unable to prevent considerable damage to the interior.
A suspected attacker, Z.K., who had criminal records for illegal drug trade and breach of the public order, was detained Wednesday, according to Istanbul police department's counter-terrorism office.
Hasan Kanaatli, president of an association of scholars working on Shiite Islam, said in a statement: "The ones who stirred up trouble in Iraq and Syria are doing the same thing in Turkey. I strongly believe that we won't be deceived."
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