Listen: The Sound Of The Hagia Sophia, More Than 500 Years Ago

[BlueMTexpat]

20. It doesn't sound as if the Hagia Sophia

will be closed to ANY person who wants to visit it.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-53375739

...
He [Erdogan] defended his decision on Friday by stressing that the country had exercised its sovereign right in converting the building back to a mosque. The first Muslim prayers would be held on 24 July.

"Like all our mosques, the doors of Hagia Sophia will be wide open to locals and foreigners, Muslims and non-Muslims," he said.

Today Turkey had "435 churches and synagogues open for worship", while "few buildings our ancestors built in Eastern Europe and Balkans stand today".
...

Erdogan, whom I despise, is playing to his ultra-religious base. Frankly, I hope that it backfires. He's taking a LOT of global heat for it.

Even he is smart enough NOT to destroy the appeal of one of the architectural wonders of the world to global tourism.

If the Turks did not destroy it before -which they didn't - I seriously doubt that there will be any looting, etc. beyond that which took place centuries ago. Even then, it was left in much better shape than Calvinists left Saint-Peter's Cathedral. And certainly it is in much better shape than our "Christian" ancestors left mosques built in Europe by Turks.