Greek tourists detained in Turkey for provocative flag in Hagia Sophia

An incident involving foreign tourists at the Hagia Sophia mosque has prompted intervention by law enforcement authorities.

A group of five tourists from Greece visited Hagia Sophia on the afternoon of April 9. After passing through security checks, they entered the building via a controlled entrance. Some time later, two of the tourists ascended to the gallery open to visitors, where one of them pulled out a Byzantine flag depicting a double-headed eagle from their pocket and took a photograph. After ensuring the photo was taken, they passed the flag to their companion, who also posed for a picture.

The flag reportedly bore a provocative inscription: "Become Orthodox or die."

Security personnel quickly responded to the incident and detained the individuals involved. Later, the police identified them as 35-year-old Mazis Mikhail and 42-year-old Konstantina Mazi. The detainees were taken to the Istanbul Palace of Justice, where a court decided to arrest them on charges of "insulting a segment of the population." The circumstances of the incident are still under investigation.

Source: NTV