Turkish police detained a suspect, identified only as M.S., on Thursday as part of an investigation into the vandalising of an Armenian church in the Kuzguncuk district of Istanbul, International Christian Concern reported. 

According to the Turkish Hürriyet Daily News, after the attack, church management has lodged a criminal complaint about the incident and have since placed the cross back in its place.

The chief prosecutor’s office announced that they are charging the man with “harming places of worship.” No other details about the status of the investigation were released, ICC noted.

Last week, Garo Paylan, a Turkish-Armenian lawmaker for the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), condemned the incident, calling it a hate crime.

“Attacks continue on our churches. The cross of our Surp Krikor Lusaroviç Armenian Church was removed and thrown away. Hate speech delivered by the ruling power normalises hate crimes,” he wrote in a tweet.

Attacker removes cross from outside of an Armenian church in Istanbul

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