Armenians in İzmir attended a religious service at St. John’s Basilica for the first time in 95 years after a fire damaged it in 1922, the Cumhuriyet daily reported on Tuesday.
Cleric Vartan Kazancıyan and his assistant Agop Minasyan presided over the religious service attended by 150 people.
Verses from Bible were read and a sermon was delivered in Armenian as well as Turkish. The choir of İstanbul Surp Hovhan Vosgerepan Armenian Catholic Church sang at the church inauguration.
The service was attended by local Levantines, Christians and Muslims.
Minasyan expressed his pleasure over the attendance of so many people and said similar ceremonies should take place at certain times of the year.