Some 20,000 Turkish conservatives in Istanbul yesterday staged the biggest protest so far against Pope Benedict XVI's trip to Turkey as opposition to this week's controversial visit gathered momentum.
"We Muslims love Jesus, but this man has no love for our religion," said Hatice Gullu, wearing the austere black headscarf worn only by Turkey's most conservative Muslim women.
Like many others, who banged drums and chanted "God is Great" under the eye of about 4,000 baton-wielding policemen and hundreds of foreign press members, her head was bound by a white card crown that read: "No to the alliance of Crusaders." Just behind her, two young men brandished posters depicting the pope and the man he is coming to Turkey to visit, Patriarch Bartholomew, as snakes. On the stage set up by the small religious party that staged the rally, a 12-year-old boy recited passages from the Koran in a high, piercing voice.
In a country of 70 million people, where an estimated 100,000 are Christian and just 32,000 of those Roman Catholic, only one in 10 Turks approves of the visit. Pope Benedict has been unpopular here since he came out in opposition to Turkey's EU accession bid while still a cardinal. In a letter to bishops, he wrote: "the roots that have formed Europe, that have permitted the formation of this continent, are those of Christianity . . . Turkey is founded upon Islam . . . Thus the entry of Turkey into the EU would be anti-historical". However, yesterday the Vatican said it did not oppose Turkey's accession to the EU.
But the main cause of controversy behind his four-day visit stems from a speech he made in September when he quoted a Byzantine emperor's characterisation of some of the Prophet Muhammad's teachings as evil and inhuman. Though he expressed regret for offending Muslims, he has not apologised outright.
On his trip, the pope had long planned to visit the famous Hagia Sophia - church turned mosque turned museum - in Istanbul. Yesterday, in what appeared to be an attempt at last-minute damage control, Vatican officials confirmed that he would also be visiting the Blue mosque, a 16th-century Ottoman masterpiece built just up the road from the Hagia Sophia. It will the first visit to a mosque of his papacy.
"I want to send a cordial greeting to the dear Turkish people, rich in history and culture," Pope Benedict said during his noon address at St Peter's yesterday.
"To these people and their representatives I express feelings of esteem and sincere friendship."
The pope will meet the archbishop of Constantinople and patriarch of the Eastern Orthodox Church, Bartholomew I, spiritual leader of 300 million Orthodox Christians, to express solidarity with him and fellow Christians, who have limited rights in Turkey, and to help improve links between the larger Orthodox world and Rome.
Feyzullah Aksoy, who runs a small grocer's stall remains unconvinced. "I have never liked this man, and I don't think he should come to Turkey", he said, walking with his wife and children towards the protest. "If he really does have to come, he should apologise properly first for the offence he caused."
It was a low-key comment that summed up the general atmosphere of the protest. Before the weekend, organisers had been promising a crowd of more than 75,000. By 2pm, many of those who turned up had begun to drift towards the shopping malls of Sisli.
In the crowd, the mood gradually became more surreal. Party officials moved around, canvassing protesters for votes at elections coming up next year.
Chants turned to the issue of Hagia Sophia, which many conservative and nationalist Turks believe Pope Benedict wants secretly to reconsecrate during his trip.
"The Hagia Sophia is ours and will remain ours," went the slogans. Referring to the 19th-century Danish philosopher, one placard read: "I trample on your tomb, Jesus: Soren Kierkegaard." The young man holding it, Huseyin Sarimsakli, acknowledged he had used it earlier this year at a protest against Danish cartoons.