Pope Leo XIV visited İstanbul’s Blue Mosque early Saturday, marking his first visit to a Muslim house of worship since becoming head of the Roman Catholic Church in May.
The Blue Mosque, formally known as the Sultan Ahmed Mosque, is one of İstanbul’s most visited landmarks, known for its six minarets and interior lined with blue tiles produced in nearby İznik. Leo followed the practice of earlier popes who prayed at the site, including Benedict XVI in 2006 and Francis in 2014.
Leo removed his shoes before entering and walked across the mosque’s orange carpet in white socks. He spent about 15 minutes inside as local Muslim officials guided him through the building.
“He wanted to see the mosque and feel its atmosphere,” Aşkın Tunca, the mosque’s muezzin, told reporters. “He was very pleased.”
Crowds gathered behind police barriers. Some welcomed the visit as a message of peace and coexistence, while others questioned the heavy security and the temporary closure of the mosque to worshippers.
Unlike earlier papal visits, Leo did not stop at the nearby Hagia Sophia, a former Byzantine basilica that later became an Ottoman mosque and then a museum before the Turkish government reconverted it into a mosque in 2020. That move drew international criticism at the time.
Leo will meet with local Christian leaders later in the day and take part in a service at the Patriarchal Church of St. George before having talks with Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I. The two are expected to sign a joint declaration during the visit.
On Saturday afternoon Leo will celebrate Mass at İstanbul’s Volkswagen Arena before traveling to Lebanon on Sunday for the second leg of his regional trip.
© Agence France-Presse