Turkey's top religious body has issued a fatwa urging Muslims with tattoos to remove them or "repent to God" if they can't.
The Hurriyet Daily News reported the news on January 8.
In its edict, Turkey's Religious Affairs Directorate, known as Diyanet in Turkish, said that all forms of body art are banned by the Prophet Muhammad, including tattoos and removal of hair from the face or eyebrows.
Tattoos are fashionable in officially secular Turkey, especially among young people in cities.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who critics accuse of seeking to impose a creeping Islamization on the country, rebuked a promising young football player last July over his tattoos.
In September, the government banned make-up, tattoos, and piercings for school pupils.
