Greece has formally appointed two new Muslim religious leaders in Western Thrace, with Bilal Kara Halil sworn in as Muft...

Greece has formally appointed two new Muslim religious leaders in Western Thrace, with Bilal Kara Halil sworn in as Mufti of Komotini and Siukri Serif Damadoglou as Mufti of Xanthi. The swearing-in ceremony took place at the Greek Ministry of Education, with Education Minister Sofia Zacharaki present as both officials formally assumed their duties. The appointments mark a significant institutional moment for the Muslim minority community in northeastern Greece. Muftis serve as senior Islamic religious authorities responsible for guiding Muslim communities on matters of religious law, and in Greece they also hold an official institutional role recognized by the state. Western Thrace, bordering Turkey and Bulgaria, is home to Greece's historically established Muslim minority, one of the few formally recognized Muslim communities within the European Union. The muftiates of Komotini and Xanthi operate within a legal framework that governs the relationship between the Greek state and the region's Muslim population. Greece appoints its muftis through a state process, a practice that has at times been a point of friction with Turkey, which has historically argued the community should elect its own religious leaders. The latest appointments continue the existing model, with Athens maintaining its authority over the selection process. #WesternThrace #Greece #MuslimMinority