The municipal authorities in Aerodrom have denied reports that a mosque is being built wihtout a permit in the Lisice neighborhood. Lisice is overwhelmingly Macedonian Christian and the residents are opposed to having a mosque there – an attempt to build one in 2013 was stopped by the city hall.

There are no plans to build new religious sites anywhere in Aerodrom. Our inspections are working to prevent any unlawful build in the municipality, Aerodrom town hall said in its press release.

Similar assurances were given in Ohrid during the building of a minaret on the Ali Pasha mosque in the center of the historic city, but because of political expediency the Zaev Government allowed the construction to go ahead without a permit. Zoran Zaev publicly stated that the pre-election period and the importance of the Albanian and Turkish vote in Ohrid is a factor in the minaret construction. General electons are scheduled for April 12 and Zaev’s SDSM party, which runs the Aerodrom town hall, is again relying on the minority vote to make up the loss of Macedonian voters. Christian citizens in Macedonia frequently complain about the loud muezzin calls that disturb the peace in the early morning.