Turkey will no longer send imams to German mosques — German ministry

December 14, 2023 and   

(Reuters) Germany has agreed with Turkey to phase out a controversial programme that posts Turkish imams to German mosques, the interior ministry in Berlin announced on Thursday, saying that the move would boost the integration of Muslims in Germany.

Some 100 imams are to be trained in Germany each year, under an agreement between the ministry, Turkish religious authority Diyanet and Turkish Islamic association DITIB.

These imams will gradually replace Diyanet-employed clerics working in Germany, which has a large Turkish diaspora but has seen its government often spar politically with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, in power for two decades, and his Islamist-rooted AK party.

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