“The clumsy attempts to revive Ottoman symbolism and allude to a tradition of greatness show that the whole endeavor of turning the Hagia Sophia into a mosque was targeting the voters that already support the current ruling party in Turkey. Regardless of what its intended audience was, the impact of this endeavor across the Islamic world outside Turkey remains insignificant. On the other hand, this change heightens the division within the already polarized Turkish society. Many worldly Turks feel like the symbolism of the sword and the rejection of Ataturk’s legacy is a message to them,” writes Ioannis N. Grigoriadis in his article for Greek newspaper “TA NEA”.

 

You can read the full article in Greek here.