A new global assessment by Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) reports a sharp rise in hostility toward religious minorities in Turkey, including the Jewish community, driven by antisemitic rhetoric and pressure on non-Muslim groups.
The October report, covering January 2023 through December 2024, places Turkey among 38 countries where discrimination is systemic, according to ACN. It links the trend to intensified public discourse after the Israel–Hamas war erupted in October 2023 and to the strengthening of conservative Islam in public life under President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Surge in antisemitic rhetoric, targeted incidents
According to ACN, antisemitic language in politics and media spiked after October 2023, alongside incidents aimed at Jews and Jewish institutions. The report cites a local AKP city councilor in Samsun who publicly praised Adolf Hitler and a protest outside Istanbul’s Or-Ahayim Jewish Hospital, where demonstrators wore white medical coats marked with red handprints.
A pro-government daily reportedly urged stripping citizenship from Turkish Jews serving in the IDF, the report said. In a separate case, high school students were reported to have given a Nazi salute toward a Jewish team during a soccer match.
Christian sites converted, vandalized or closed
ACN says Christian communities also faced setbacks. In May 2024, authorities converted Istanbul’s fourth-century Church of the Holy Savior in Chora into a mosque, echoing the 2020 move at Hagia Sophia.
The report notes an August 2024 vandalism attack at a Greek Orthodox cemetery in Istanbul and a temporary closure order, citing earthquake safety, for the only active Christian church in Bursa, a claim church leaders dispute.
The report documents seven hate-motivated incidents against Alevis in 2023, including desecration of sacred sites and assaults. Yazidi families in southeastern Turkey reported repeated harassment and property damage as they sought to reclaim ancestral land.
Policy shifts in schools favor Sunni practice
ACN highlights a government school initiative, ÇEDES, that places imams and preachers as “spiritual advisers” in public schools while expanding Sunni Islamic studies. The Education Ministry also banned Christmas and Easter celebrations in private schools, citing national and cultural values, the report said.
Constitutionally, Turkey recognizes only Armenians, Greeks, and Jews as non-Muslim minorities under the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne. Other communities, including Protestants and Syriac-Assyrians, lack legal status as religious entities. ACN concludes that the overall environment for freedom of religion in Turkey remains “negative,” citing persistent hate speech, social intolerance, and administrative obstacles.