BRUSSELS: Belgium ordered a Turkish imam on Thursday to leave the country after he posted comments judged homophobic on social media.

The imam, working in a mosque in northern Belgium, had his residency permit renewal request denied and been given 30 days to leave, the government said.

“As an imam you have an exemplary role, especially if you have been granted the right to work in Belgium. Whoever refuses to respect our values must suffer the consequences,” the junior minister for migration, Sammy Mahdi, said.The decision was made last month and confirmed after immigration officials spoke with the imam last week. It can be appealed.

The government statement said the imam, whom it did not identify, had published “hateful messages to the LGBT community”, notably on Facebook.

A source close to the case said the imam served in the Yesil Camii mosque catering for a Turkish community in Houthalen-Helchteren, in the Flemish region of Limbourg.

Published in Dawn, January 29th, 2021