The new generation of Turkish passports will feature an updated design, including a drawing of the 1,500-year-old Hagia Sophia, the Byzantine cathedral-turned-mosque, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said in an address to the nation.
Erdogan formally converted Istanbul’s crowing architectural jewel from a museum into a mosque in 2020, in a highly controversial decision that drew international criticism but pleased his conservative base.
As expected, Turkey’s decision to decorate the passports with the “seized” Hagia Sophia triggered outrage in Greece with mediato speak of “another Turkish provocation.”
The new passports will also include drawings of the Topkapi Palace and the country’s old parliament building, the Turkish president said.
