Because it was full of Muslims?
Not the most adaptive people in the world.
full of Muslims
Had a good visit to Istanbul, a serious Turkish bath is a very nice experience. The country was even better in the rear view mirror though, not a nice group of folks unless you are handing over money to their business.
Nearly half the empire’s population were Christians in 1810. They were dhimmis then, but by 1840 they were given nearly equal rights, under pressure from Russia, France and the UK (the latter two of whom kept the empire artificially alive.)
Even in the Arab world, places like Syria and iraq were 25% to 30% Christian