Turkish PM Assures Safety of Religious Minority Turkey's prime minister is promising to protect the country's largest religious minority amid concerns about its security. Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Tuesday that 25 houses, mostly belonging to Alevi Muslims, were recently vandalized in the southeastern city of Adiyaman. Interior Minister Idris Naim Sahin earlier said children were believed to be behind the marking of the houses with red paint. The incident stoked fears of violence in Adiyaman since Alevi houses were similarly marked before the killing of more than 100 Alevis in neighboring Kahramanmaras province in 1978. The Alevis, who do away with many customary Islamic practices, are considered heretics by many Sunni and Shia traditionalists, making them the target of discrimination in Turkey.