Turkey’s Erdogan to open Cologne mosque in controversial state visit The Turkish president's hopes of addressing the German-Turkish community are closer to becoming reality. His upcoming state visit was described as a 'betrayal' by journalist Deniz Yücel, who was imprisoned in Turkey.

September 19, 2018   

(Deutsche Welle) Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will officially open a new central mosque in the western German city of Cologne, the Turkish-Islamic organization DITIB confirmed on Tuesday evening.

Erdogan will open the mosque at a ceremony at the end of his state visit to Germany, which is set to take place on September 28 and 29.

During his two-day visit, Erdogan will be received with military honors as well as a state banquet hosted by German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier. The Turkish leader is also due to meet with German Chancellor Angela Merkel for talks in Berlin.

Sources familiar with the visit told the DPA news agency that Erdogan has been hoping to speak with members of the Turkish-German community in either Berlin or Cologne during his visit.

Read more.

Related Articles

Children & Teens

German daycares under police protection after plans to stop serving pork Two Leipzig daycare centers reversed moves to remove pork from the menu after the plans sparked a nationwide debate. The heated responses prompted police to park patrol cars outside to protect against 'possible dangers.'

July 23, 2019   

(Deutsche Welle) Plans to no longer serve children pork or gelatin-containing products like gummy bears at two daycare centers in the eastern German city of Leipzig prompted a wave of criticism online and made headlines across the country on Tuesday. The mass-circulation […]

Mosques

Mosques in Germany: Statistics hard to come by In a country that diligently makes note of its statistics, it may seem rather puzzling that no one knows the exact number of mosques in Germany. Differing laws and a lack of top-down organizing are largely to blame.

October 8, 2018   

(Deutsche Welle) Exactly how many mosque buildings, and how many mosque associations, are there in Germany? No one in the country knows for sure. Ever since the opening of a Turkish state-financed mosque in Cologne, Islamic houses of prayer have been a […]