Editing Persecution of Christians (section)

=== Turkey ===
The Republic of Turkey was established in 1923, after the vast majority of Christian inhabitants of Anatolia had been expelled or massacred in the late Ottoman period ([[Armenian genocide]], [[Greek genocide]]). However, there still remained sizeable Greek and Armenian minorities in Istanbul. Beginning in the 1940s, the Turkish government instituted repressive policies forcing many Christians to emigrate. Examples are the [[Labour battalion (Turkey)|labour battalions]] drafted among non-Muslims during World War II, as well as the Fortune Tax ([[Varlık Vergisi]]) levied mostly on non-Muslims during the same period. These resulted in financial ruination and death for many Christians. The exodus was given greater impetus with the [[Istanbul Pogrom]] of September 1955 and the [[Expulsion of Greeks from Istanbul|expulsion of Istanbul Greeks]] which led to thousands of Greeks fleeing the city, eventually reducing the Greek population from 200,000 in 1924 to about 7,000 by 1978 and to about 2,500 by 2006.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Standpoint |first=Internationalist |date=2023-09-06 |title=September 6-7, 1955: Istanbul Pogrom- a "closed chapter" in Turkish history? |url=https://www.internationaliststandpoint.org/september-6-7-1955-istanbul-pogrom-a-closed-chapter-in-turkish-history/ |access-date=2025-04-30 |website=Internationalist Standpoint |language=en-US}}</ref>