Being one of the leading cases in 2019, as described by the President of the European Court of Human Rights, this article analyzes the Molla Sali case in the merits as well as the just satisfaction stages. It argues that the Grand Chamber’s decision did not open the door for an expansive application of Islamic religious law (Sharī ̔a) in Europe; that the ECtHR did not impose a flat ban on religious adjudication; and that the ramifications of the decision may influence different religious minorities in general with a particularly alienating impact on Muslim Europeans. The case brought the minority protection regime that had been established in Western Thrace in the aftermath of the First World War under the ECtHR’s scrutiny as to its compatibility with the principles of equality and the rule of law as set forth in the ECHR. Although the Hellenic Republic was held in violation of the ECHR, its newly introduced law amending the functioning of the Muftī courts sought to balance minority interests with the mandates of the ECHR. While the just satisfaction decision was perceived as a Pyrrhic victory, it remains to be seen whether the ongoing proceedings before Turkish courts will be politicized.
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