Worshippers at at Turkish mosque have been praying the wrong way for nearly 40 years.

The mosque in Sugoren in the country's west was built incorrectly in 1981, the Hurriyet Daily News reported.

The new imam Isa Kaya, 24, addressed rumours of the design flaw and consulted with local muftis, the village elders.

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A villager prays in the right direction indicated by the white lines painted on the carpet

The muftis said the Mihrab, a niche built into the Mosque's wall to indicate the direction of Mecca, was facing the wrong way.

It is thought that the mistake was a relic from the old mosque so villagers may have been praying in the wrong direction for many more years.

The faith says that prayers should be directed towards the Kaaba which sits at the centre of Islam's most sacred site in Mecca, Saudi Arabia.

As a temporary solution Mr Kaya laid down arrows of white tape to point his flock right, the Hurriyet Daily News said.

The outside of the mosque in the village of Sugoren

Worshippers circle the Kaaba at Mecca which Muslims around the world point to in prayer

The interior of the mosque where worshippers have knelt in the wrong direction for decades

It is thought that the mistake was a relic from the old mosque meaning villagers may have been praying in the wrong direction for more than 37 years

The mosque in Sugoren, in the western province of Yalova which was built wrongly in 1981

'We have explained the situation to our congregation and most of them have reacted positively to our solution,' the imam told Demiroren News Agency on October 17.

Their prayers, which are said five times a day, are now being said as the Quran instructs.