The removal of trees in a rare green zone on Tuesday night in Ataköy, in İstanbul's Bakırköy district -- to make room for a new mosque complex -- was met with the protest of a group of local citizens, who removing the aluminum fences put up around the construction site.
The 4,000 square-meter plot, which is home to the trees that were destroyed Tuesday night, was opened for development recently to create space for a mosque complex. A civil society organization called the Bakırköy People's Council and other groups gathered at the construction site, protesting the destruction of the trees.
The site is designated as a post-earthquake assembly station, and the locals have been collecting signatures for a petition against opening it to development since April. The complex to be built on the land will consist of a mosque, a Quran school and a dormitory, as well as other facilities.
The Bakırköy People's Council has vowed to fight the construction, and called on interested parties to extend their support.
(Cihan/Today's Zaman)
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