Return of Mor gabriel Monastery approved

As promised by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan last week during the announcement of the reform package, return of the lands of historic Mor Gabriel Monastery to the Syriac community in Turkey was confirmed yesterday by the Assembly of Foundations, the highest decision-making body of the general directorate for foundations. Convening yesterday, the Assembly reviewed the legal compliance of overturning 12 parcels of land and concluded that there was no problem with applying for land registration. Speaking at the press conference held after the meeting, Director General of Foundations Adnan Ertem said that the decision was only the first step for the long waited restoration and expressed hope to solve other legal issues regarding the restoration and initiate a new phase as soon as possible.