Blows below the belt ahead of Turkey's election

There has been intense speculation for days about whether President Tayyip Erdo?an plans to announce the reopening of the Hagia Sophia to Islamic worship, ahead of Turkey?s critical parliamentary election on June 7.

The 1,500-year-old Byzantine cathedral was converted to a mosque when Istanbul (then Constantinople) was taken by Sultan Mehmet II ?the Conqueror? on May 29, 1453. Islamic worship at Hagia Sophia (called ?Ayasofya? in Turkish) then continued up until 1935, even after the Turkish regime shifted from a sultanate to a republic in 1923 to highlight the secular nature of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk?s ?New Turkey.?

The ?New Turkey? of Tayyip Erdo?an tends to highlight the Islamic nature of the republic. A recent study conducted by Kadir Has University in Istanbul showed that a majority of Turks define the country as a ?Muslim? one more than anything else.

Erdo?an has raised the bar further not only by putting his full weight behind the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Parti) - despite his non-partisan position according to the constitution - but also by using the Islamic factor, including brandishing the holy book of the Quran, during the election campaign.

Erdo?an is hosting a ?Conquest Festival? in Istanbul on May 30 for the 562nd anniversary of the conquest of the city. The event will also neatly work as a public election rally for the AK Parti.

It is not clear whether reopening the Hagia Sophia to Islamic practice will lead to a boost in the AK Parti?s votes to secure 330 seats in the 550-seat parliament, (thus allowing Erdo?an to shape a new constitution based on a strong presidential model instead of the current parliamentary one), but he wants to try his chances to the last drop. That is why he did not want...