This Mosque has become a much needed home for stray cats this winter

Imam Mustafa Efe opened up his mosque to a family of felines in the Turkish city of Istanbul.

Istanbul is known for its large stray cat population.

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Ibrahim Usta / AP

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Brian Gratwicke / Via Flickr: briangratwicke

The cats are popular with tourists and locals alike. The internet is full of pictures of them and many go out of their way to feed and shelter them.

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Ibrahim Usta / AP

Mustafe Efe decided to take his love of the street cats to another level. He's opened his doors to the Aziz Mahmud Hüdayi Mosque in the historical district of Üsküdar to allow stray cats to live inside during the cold winter months.

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Facebook

He happily shares adorable photos of his "guests" on his Facebook page.

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Facebook

The kitties enjoy the warms. :)

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Facebook

Others have also posted and shared pictures of the cats in the mosque.

Tüm dostlarımıza Hüdayi Hz.'nin sofrasından hayırlı, bereketli, güzel bir Cuma dileriz :) @hafizmustafaefe pic.twitter.com/bccSOtASTj
— Serdar Çelebi (@serdarcel) January 8, 2016

@hafizmustafaefe pic.twitter.com/1qEiMrZFgx
— İbrahim Düzkalem (@ibrahimduzkalem) January 3, 2016

Mustafa has gained a lot of support and fans on social media for his kindness.

The doors of the mosque in cold weather has been opened for stray cats by Turkish Imam Mustafa Efe @MuslimMatters pic.twitter.com/9raAX1VRXx
— Mr. Shaykh (@anysaiid) January 15, 2016

An imam orders opening the doors of a mosque in Istanbul for cats to protect them from the cold weather.
Posted by Mohammed Matter on Friday, January 15, 2016