Prayers were said at the meal by from Mahmut Özdemir, the Turkish religious affairs department representative to the UK
Turkey’s consul general and his wife played host to an iftar meal to break the fast after the first day of Ramadan.
Emirhan Yorulmazlar and his wife Ayşegül welcomed guests individually to the event, which began with prayers from Mahmut Özdemir, the newly-appointed representative of the Turkish religious affairs department in the UK.
In remarks after the prayer, Mr Yorulmazlar said the month of Ramadan was a symbol of peace.
Local politicians and community leaders were hosted at the event
“The month of Ramadan is a part of our culture and the symbol of such concepts as peace, solidarity, mutual aid and forgiveness,” he said. “Our prophet has constantly underlined the importance of forgiveness and pointed to peace.
“By maintaining dialogue not just in the country in which we live but around the world, I hope that we achieve what we have done here tonight and ensure different communities live among one another in peace.”
Among those present at the event were Merton council leader Stephen Alambritis and Southwark’s former mayor Sunil Chopra alongside Enfield councillor Yasemin Brett and Hackney councillor Mete Çoban.
Also present were Hakan Camuz, the general secretary of Aziziye Mosque; Osman Battal, who represents Turkish Airlines in London; Muttalip Ünlüer from the Union of the European Turkish Democrats in the UK; Sündüz Abbas and Caner Mülayim, who are the UK representatives respectively of Iraqi Turkmens and Crimean Tatars; and Erdoğan Çelik from the UK-Turkey Islamic Culture Centre.
The guests were all served homemade soup as a start, followed by a meat, rice and salad dish. They were offered baklava and tea for dessert.