Turkish deputy PM condemns attack on Istanbul mosque

Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Emrullah Isler has condemned an arson attack on a Shia mosque in Istanbul.

The apparently sectarian attack in the early hours of Tuesday came a week after the police were informed about threats against the mosque, Hamza Aydin, the imam of the mosque, told the Anadolu Agency.

"A young bearded man came to the mosque last week. He said 'You are a Jaffari, you worship stone. We will set this mosque on fire'," Aydin said. "We went to the police. They said they could not do anything without any video footage. It is a pity. Those who did this are not Muslims."

The Jaffari are a Shia sect. Most of Turkey's Muslim population is Sunni.

Condemning the attack, in the Esenyurt district of the city, Isler said Wednesday: "It is impossible to approve of these kind of attacks. In the first place I condemn the attack and I hope the Turkish security forces arrest the perpetrators as soon as possible."

He said the attack was a sectarian provocation, adding: "No-one can profit by clashing."

Police and firefighters rushed to the mosque but were unable to prevent considerable damage to the interior.

Hasan Kanaatli, president of an association of scholars working on Shiite Islam, said in a statement: "The ones who stirred up trouble in Iraq and Syria are doing the same thing in Turkey. I strongly believe that we won't be deceived."