One of the World's Oldest Monasteries Expropriated

Country: Turkey

Date of incident: January 31, 2011


The lands surrounding the Syrian-orthodox monastery of Mor Gabriel, near Midyat in South-Eastern Turkey, have been expropriated by Turkey’s supreme court. According to the verdict, the treasury of Turkey has a right to claim the lands.

According to the monastery's leaders, they have owned the land for centuries, but have been unable to register it due to bureaucratic stonewalling. As they depend on the supply of the estate, the residents of Mor Gabriel may be forced to abandon one of the oldest monasteries of the world, unless the judgement is reversed.

We reported in December 2008: Aramaic Christians Under Great Pressure

Read more: 

German: News Agency Zenit 

English: http://www.aina.org/releases/20110130160008.htm

 

http://www.economist.com/node/17632939

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