New Turkish Passport is coming
Turkiye’s President Erdogan announced the appearance of Hagia Sophia on Turkish passports
Turkey’s new passports will feature updated designs, including a drawing of the 1,500-year-old Hagia Sophia, a Byzantine temple turned mosque, Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogain says in an address to the nation, reports today, May 11, the Greek newspaper “Kathimerini”.
Istanbul’s majestic architectural gem was converted from a museum to a mosque in 2020 by Erdogan’s decree in a controversial move that drew international criticism but appealed to his conservative supporters inside Turkey.
The new passports of the Republic of Turkey will also include drawings of the Topkapi Palace in the historical center of Istanbul and the country’s old parliament building, the head of state announced.
Recall that on July 10, 2020, the State Council (higher administrative court) of Turkey made a decision as part of the appeal of the country’s government to change the status of Hagia Sophia in Istanbul from a museum to a mosque.
On the same day, President Erdogan signed a decree allowing Muslims to pray in Hagia Sophia. On July 24, 2020, it hosted the first Friday prayer in 86 years, which caused indignation and protest in neighboring Greece.
During prayers in a former Christian church, mourning bells were heard from the bell towers of Greek churches, and the state flags of Greece were flown at half-mast. In Thessaloniki and the city of Patras, prayers were offered for the “liberation” of the Hagia Sophia.
