Turkey's Diyanet chief Safi Arpaguş sparks controversy over overseas appointments and Hagia Sophia remarks

Safi Arpaguş was appointed head of Turkey's Presidency of Religious Affairs on 18 September 2025. Within weeks he reassigned several senior officials to foreign religious service posts with monthly salaries of about €7,000. Kadir Dinç became Kosovo’s Religious Services Adviser, Mahmut Özdemir was sent to Austria, Yusuf Tunç to Turkmenistan and Salih Gör to the Brussels office. The moves have been described as an "escort scandal" and criticized for their high cost.

In a separate appearance, Arpaguş addressed the "Fethin Nişanesi, Medeniyetin Kalbi" program at Turkey International Islam, Science and Technology University. He celebrated the anniversary of Hagia Sophia’s reopening for worship, calling the monument a timeless symbol of Islamic civilization and a masterpiece of coexistence, and linked its history to the 1453 conquest of Istanbul.