Greece has yet to restore historic mosques on the island of Lesbos despite mutual agreements and the principle of reciprocity with neighboring Türkiye, according to an expert.
As per a deal signed in 2010 with the municipality of Ayvalık in Türkiye’s western Balıkesir province, which borders Lesbos, the Greek island’s administration agreed to restore three historical mosques on Lesbos in exchange for the restoration of three Greek Orthodox churches: Taxiarchis, Agios Yannis and Ayvalık Ayazma.
“While Ayvalık has fulfilled the agreement and renovated the buildings, Greece is yet to adhere to the deal 14 years later,” Neval Konuk, an associate professor of architecture history and a lecturer of tourism guiding from Marmara University, told Anadolu Agency (AA).
Though Greece and Türkiye appear to have opened a fresh leaf in long-tense bilateral relations since last year, the state of Ottoman heritage mosques is a point of contention between the two. Türkiye has criticized Athens in the past for depriving Muslim minorities of rights and letting Ottoman-era buildings, including the mosques, fall into disrepair.
Turkish experts, too, have repeatedly slammed Greece’s practice of shutting down historic mosques and other buildings from the Ottoman era as a move “violating reciprocity principles in granting freedom of religion.”
“Türkiye has rebuilt more than 80 churches and opened them to worship on certain days even in places where there are no congregations,” Konak argued. “Greek scientists too supported these restorations, and yet we cannot have Greece restore even a fountain.”
“There can be no talk of any reciprocity when it comes to restoring historic works and historical temples between Türkiye and Greece,” she lamented.
Konuk pointed out Yalı Mosque, Valide Mosque and Yeni Mosque as prime examples of the dilapidated state of Ottoman-era mosques in Lesbos.
Yalı Mosque, built in 1805, was used as a butcher’s shop until the 2000s and is used as an agricultural tools office today. The restoration of Valide Mosque, dating back to 1615, was deliberately slowed down after Türkiye reconverted Istanbul's landmark Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque back into a mosque from a museum in 2021.
“Now they’re considering turning the mosque into a city library and a memorial house after it’s completed,” Konuk said.
As for Yeni Mosque, built in 1815 in the city center of Lesbos, it was stripped of its outer coating and plaster, leaving it vulnerable to external damage for 15 years.
The mountainous island of Lesbos came under Ottoman rule in 1462 during the reign of Mehmet II and remained so until the 1913 Treaty of London, which ceded all European territory of the Ottoman Empire west of the line between Enos on the Aegean and Sea and Midia on the Black Sea to the Balkan League.
Dozens of Ottoman buildings like mosques commissioned by members of the royal house, government offices, bathhouses, all-girls schools and police stations were built on Lesbos during this period, but there is no registration for buildings constructed after 1821, which Greece considers the start of its independence, Konak explained.
“By classifying buildings built before 1821 as post-Byzantine works, Greece approaches Ottoman architectural works with prejudice and disregard,” she argued.
The restoration of mosques in Lesbos also concerns the freedoms of religion, worship and conscience, Konak further said.
“For instance, nearly 6,500 Turks live on the Island of Rhodes, where more than 300 Ottoman-era mosques are standing and well-maintained. Turkish tourists pay a lot of visits to these mosques, but only two mosques are open to worship: the Ibrahim Pasha mosque in the city center and the Sulaymaniyah Mosque, which only opens for Eid prayers twice a year.”
