The local Ministry of Interior office had closed the mosque for six months on March 14, on the grounds that it was “promoting extremism”.
A local administrative court halted the closure after 10 days, a decision that the government has appealed against.
On Tuesday, the State Council rejected the appeal, deeming the closure a “grave and clearly illegal violation of freedom of worship,” according to a court document.
This is the first time that the court has not upheld a government decision to close a mosque on the basis of a “white note”, a document prepared by French intelligence services, which contrasts with a recent trend of closing mosques using a range of powers that rights groups and lawyers say violates freedoms.
Among the initial accusations against the Pisak mosque were the dissemination of pro-Palestinian views on social media, which the government said were anti-Semitic, or messages of support for figures and organizations “promoting extremism.”
But the mosque’s lawyer, Sevin Guise Guise, said that “there is nothing in the case that proves a link between the mosque’s activities and incitement to terrorism.”
“Pesak Mosque is an open and peaceful place of worship, and its members rallied to his defense by gathering in front of the courts during the two hearings,” he said.
“This decision sets a legal precedent that will slow down the successive mosque closures that we have seen in the past few months. We hope it will be a sign of calm,” Guise told Reuters.
A spokesman for the Ministry of Interior told “Reuters”, that the ministry was informed of the decision, and refused to make further comments.
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