UPDATE - Turkey decries burning of its flag in Greece

UPDATES WITH MORE REMARKS FROM FOREIGN MINISTRY SPOKESMAN

By Sena Guler

ANKARA (AA) - Turkey’s Foreign Ministry condemned Saturday that Greek authorities "provoked public and allowed burning of Turkish flag in Thessaloniki" over reopening of Hagia Sophia Mosque for worship in Istanbul.

“We strongly condemn that the Greek government and parliament members provoked public through their hostile statements and openly allowed the burning of our glorious flag in Thessaloniki,” Hami Aksoy, the Foreign Ministry spokesman, said in a written statement.

Aksoy said Greece showcased its hostility against Islam and Turkey once again under the pretext of showing reaction against the reopening of Hagia Sophia Mosque for worship.

He said “the spoiled children of Europe”, who cannot accept the reopening of the iconic architecture as a mosque, are in a delusion again.

“These racist heads, who did not learn from history and disrespected our glorious flag, should well remember their fate in the Aegean,” Aksoy stressed.

“Greece should wake up from the Byzantine dream, that it has failed to do so for 567 years, and get rid of its frustration,” he said.

The Greek oppression against the Muslim Turkish minority in the country are registered by the decisions of the European Court of Human Rights, he noted, adding that Greece is the only European country which has no mosque in its capital and that it has overlooked to demolition of historical mosques on its territory.

Aksoy highlighted that Hagia Sophia Mosque has opened for worship in line with the will of the Turkish nation.

“Hagia Sophia Mosque, like other cultural assets on our lands, belongs to Turkey, and it will forever be our property and in our protection,” he said.

He also stressed that opening Hagia Sophia Mosque for worship complies with both requirements and essence of 1972 UNESCO Convention on the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage.

“In line with Turkey’s commitment to all religious rights and freedoms, and its tradition of tolerance, Hagia Sophia Mosque, the place of worship for Islam, which is the religion of peace and embraces all religions, will continue to be open for everyone from now on as well,” he said.

The Hagia Sophia served as a church for 916 years until the conquest of Istanbul, and a mosque from 1453 to 1934 -- nearly 500 years -- and most recently as a museum for 86 years.

One of the most visited historic buildings in Turkey by domestic and international tourists, Hagia Sophia was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1985, during its time as a museum.

On July 10, a Turkish court annulled a 1934 Cabinet decree that had turned Hagia Sophia into a museum, paving the way for its use again as a mosque after an 86-year hiatus.

The first prayer since its official reconversion to a mosque was held on Friday.