![\"Two](\"https:\/\/www.ekathimerini.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/epa-hagia_sophia-320x200.jpg\")
Two Greek tourists \u2013 a man and a woman \u2013 have been arrested in Istanbul after allegedly unfurling a Greek flag inside Hagia Sophia and recording the act on video, according to Turkish media reports.<\/p>\n
The plain cross Greek flag bore a double-headed Byzantine eagle and the inscription \u201cOrthodoxy or death,\u201d Turkish outlets said.<\/p>\n
The incident is said to have taken place on April 9 inside the historic monument, which was originally built in 537 by Byzantine Emperor Justinian. Following the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople in 1453, the building was converted into a mosque. It was later designated a museum in 1934 under Ataturk, the founder of the modern Turkish Republic, before being reconverted into a mosque in 2020.<\/p>\n
Security camera footage released to Turkish media shows the couple inside the building, with officials attempting to intervene and stop the display of the flag.<\/p>\n
Turkish authorities launched an investigation shortly after the incident and detained the two individuals at a hotel where they were staying, according to reports.<\/p>\n
Following their arrest and the issuance of an arrest warrant, the pair were brought before the courts and remanded on charges of \u201cinsulting a section of the public,\u201d Turkish media said.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
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