Muslim faithful await Hagia Sophia Friday prayers

Hundreds of Muslim faithful were making their way to Istanbul's landmark Hagia Sophia on Friday to take part in the first prayers in 86 years at the structure that was once was Christendom's most significant cathedral, then a mosque and museum before its re-conversion into a Muslim place of worship.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is scheduled to attend the inaugural prayers inside the sixth-century monument along with some 500 dignitaries, as he fulfills what he has described as the "dream of our youth" anchored in Turkey's Islamic movement.

Thousands of men and women, including many who traveled from across Turkey, are set to perform prayers in segregated areas outside Hagia Sophia.

Several camped near the structure overnight.

Orthodox church leaders in Greece and the United States, meanwhile were scheduled to observe "a day of mourning" over the inaugural prayers.