Turkey: ‘Halal Facebook’ introduced to global audiences in Istanbul

Monday evening saw prominent Muslim figures from all over the world gather at Istanbul’s stunning Çyragan Palace for the first official insight into a new social networking phenomenon set to hit the Muslim worldwide — Salam World.

Described as a “Halal Facebook,” Salam World will be a Muslim exclusive social networking platform for Muslims of all ages, and the headquarters of the company is set to be located in Istanbul.

There are currently 800 million Facebook users across the world, 300 of whom are Muslim. The president of the Salam World company, Abdülvahit Niyazov, said that the platform has been developed with the aim of providing a more “halal” (Islamically permissible) group for Muslims to interact with each other online.

Niyazov said Istanbul was seen as an ideal location due to its unique position between the Eastern and Western worlds. “By 2015 we hope to have over 700 million people using Salam World,” he said, adding that Salam World is expected to be launched before the fasting month of Ramadhan this year.

Today’s Zaman