The responsibility for covering the damage in the house where the minaret fell during the earthquake has been determined.

In the earthquakes centered in Kahramanmaraş, the minaret of the Adıyaman Hospital Mosque collapsed onto the adjacent 4-story building. Mehmet Can Söylemez, one of the residents of the heavily damaged building, filed a lawsuit for the damages to be covered by the Turkey Diyanet Foundation, which constructed the mosque.

Earthquake victim Mehmet Can Söylemez stated that he was aggrieved due to the damage caused by the structure of a third party on his property and that his damages should be compensated. Söylemez requested that 1 million TL in damages be paid to him, with the note that "the right to claim for more is reserved." The expert report prepared within the scope of the lawsuit indicated that there were 2 minarets on the northern part of the mosque, both of which had collapsed, and it was noted in the report that the minaret on the northeast facade fell onto the rooms on the northern side of the house in question, resulting in severe damage to the structure.

The report also stated that the mosque was built in 2016, that the damage caused by the earthquakes to the mosques could not be overlooked, and based on data from the Ministry of Environment, Urbanization, and Climate Change, it was noted that 3 mosques in Adıyaman were destroyed in the disaster, 3 were to be urgently demolished, 12 were heavily damaged, 11 were moderately damaged, and 14 were slightly damaged.

DECISION MADE

The Adıyaman 2nd Civil Court of First Instance decided, in accordance with the expert report, that 925,344 TL in compensation for the damages to the plaintiff's property would be collected from the Turkey Diyanet Foundation along with the legal interest accruing from the date of the earthquake and paid to the plaintiff.

Mehmet Can Söylemez's lawyer, Kerim Bahadır Ertaş, stated, "In the discussions with the Presidency of Religious Affairs, we were informed that the mosque belongs to the foundation. Since it was not possible for us to calculate the material damages incurred, we requested that our 1 million TL material damages be taken from the defendant and paid to my client, with the reservation that our right to claim for more is reserved, until the damages will be determined by the report to be prepared by the court. None of these types of cases had been concluded after the earthquake. We have received the first decision on this matter."