Habibi Neccar Mosque in Hatay, one of the first known mosques of Anatolia, was destroyed in the 7.7 magnitude earthquake centered in Kahramanmaraş. While the historical Yeni Hamam, located near the 14-century-old mosque, was destroyed, the area was viewed from the air with a drone.
In the 7.7 earthquake centered in Kahramanmaraş, the buildings in a large part of Hatay were damaged and destroyed. The earthquake also damaged and destroyed historical places. Among the destroyed places was the Habibi Neccar Mosque, one of the first known mosques in Anatolia.
The mosque, which dates back to the 7th century and has a fountain built in the 19th century in its courtyard, was viewed from the air with a drone. The historical Yeni Hamam, located near the 14-century-old mosque, was also damaged in the earthquake. Habibi Neccar Mosque and its minaret, which were damaged in previous earthquakes, were renovated many times.
About Habib-i Neccar Mosque
It was built in the 7th century over a pagan temple from the Roman period. It is the oldest mosque within the borders of the Republic of Turkey. Today's mosque was renovated during the Ottoman period, it is surrounded by madrasah rooms. There is a 19th century fountain in its courtyard.
The mosque is entered through a large pointed deaf arched crown door and a round arched door with an inscription in the middle. Adjacent to the narthex, it has a rectangular plinth, polygonal body, wooden balcony, and a minaret with shoes. On the right of the minaret are the tombs of Habib Neccar, on the left there are the tombs of Yahya (Barnabas) and Yunus (Pavlos).
When the city of Antakya was conquered by Abu Ubeyde bin Jarrah, one of the commanders of the Islamic State's leader, Caliph Omar, in 636, a mosque was built on the site of the tomb of Habib-i Neccar and the two apostles of Jesus, as the symbol of the conquest. The city, which was captured by the Crusaders in 1098 and became the Principality of Antakya in 1099, had the mosque rebuilt when the Mamluk Sultan Melik Zahir Baybars conquered it. There is an inscription bearing the name of Baybars on the madrasah walls of the mosque. Damaged by earthquakes, the mosque and its minaret were renovated many times. A large part of it was destroyed in the earthquakes of 6 and 2023 magnitudes that occurred in Kahramanmaraş center on February 7,7, 7,6.
13-32 of Surah Yasin in the Qur'an. In the verses, the story of a city people (the expression ashab al-karye is used) to whom ambassadors were sent is told. According to the surah, after the people of the city denied the two envoys sent to him, a third envoy was sent to support them; The people accused the ambassadors of bringing bad luck, but a man who came running from the farthest part of the city told his people to follow the envoys.
The town mentioned here is not specified, but based on the narrations from the Companions, the commentators wrote that this town was Antakya and the person was Habib-i Neccar. In the continuation of the event, it is told that the man who came from the edge of the city and said "why do you not obey these ambassadors" was martyred because of this. Thereupon, it is stated that Allah gave a divine punishment to this community.
The story of Habib-i Neccar in the time of Yasin shows parallelism with the way the apostles shaped Christianity in Antakya. Forty days after the crucifixion of Jesus, the 12 apostles gathered in Jerusalem, decided to organize to spread the message of Jesus, and the city of Antioch, which is the largest city in the region and has an autonomous administration structure under the Roman Empire, is suitable for spreading the message of Jesus. had found it. In the Gospels and history books, the apostles Yahya (Barnabas) and Yunus (Pavlos), who shaped Christianity in Antakya, first came to Antakya from Jerusalem and then the apostle Shem'un-u Sefa (Petrus) to support them. It is written that he also came here. Also, historian John Malalas wrote that when the three apostles told the message of Jesus in Antioch in 37 AD, there was an earthquake here. The earthquake is similar to the event described in Surah Yasin, when God gave a divine punishment to the people of the city.
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