Why Is Turkey's Erdogan Going After This Popular Lebanese TV Figure? 

Reacting to the recent decision taken by the Turkish President to revert the historic Hagia Sophia museum into a mosque, a Lebanese popular TV talk show host described Erdogan as "evil," prompting the Lebanese persecutor to call the journalist for trial next fall.

Translation: "Just as I opposed reverting Sevilla and Cordoba mosques into churches, today I join millions of voices that oppose and condemn reverting the Hagia Sophia Cathedral into a mosque. Attacking holy places is condemned whether they're mosques or churches. Reverting Hagia Sophia into a mosque will not make you a Caliph."

The prominent TV figure Neshah Der Haroutiounian attacked the Turkish decision on Twitter too, saying that he opposes changing the status of places of worship regardless of religion.

Translation: "This is so bizarre! When the journalist Neshan talks about Erdogan and describes him as evil and tells the truth about the Ottoman crimes against Armenians, he's persecuted and is facing a strong media attack. It's weird what the Lebanese government is doing."

During the live broadcast of his show "Ana Haik," Neshan responded to a tweet calling him "racist" over his stance, and accusing him of "opposing Turkey merely on grounds of his Armenian heritage."

The tweet's writer had describes Neshan as an "Armenian refugee," which angered Neshan who responded saying "I'm more Lebanese than you, and yes, Erdogan is evil and he's the son of a million evil men."

Later, Neshan clarified that his comment "referred to the Turkish political regime in addition to the Ottomans and the Turks."

Following the on-air angry statement, the Lebanese foreign ministry reported receiving a note of protest from the Turkish government, which led to officially accusing Neshan of "publicly and directly offending Erdogan and the Turkish people."

Commenting on the legal decision, Neshan highlighted that "going to jail won't make much of a difference to him" as he'll be only moved from the big jail that is Lebanon to a small cell."

Translation: "In a phone call with Neshan following news of legal action against him based on his statements on Turkey, he said, "if I go to jail, it won't make much difference since we're living in a big prison and I'll only be moving to a small cell but then I'll be paying the price of my conviction."

As soon as the Lebanese decision was reported by local media outlets, many social media users expressed their solidarity with Neshan, with some expressing their support for his statements, and others rejecting legal persecution "based on views expressed by journalists."

Some commentators argued that the Lebanese decision might have to do with the current economic crisis the country is suffering from, saying that "their government might be trying to win Turkish financial support by persecuting Neshan."

Translation: "I sure am in solidarity with Neshan. The ottomans had occupied our country in the past and history tells us what Djemal Pasha did to us. In addition to the Armenian genocide when thousands of innocent people were killed in a massacre still unrecognized by Turkey."

By the end of the Ottoman Empire rule over the region in the early 20th century, over 1.5 million Armenians were mass-murdered by Turkish troops, causing decades-long hostility between the two nations.