Mosque ‘insult’

A GREEK Cypriot official spokesman has dismissed Turkish reactions to a fresh attack on a mosque in the South as “extreme.”

Kyriacos Koushos condemned the latest incident, in which a Byzantine flag was hung over the roof of Tuzla mosque in Larnaca. But speaking on Greek Cypriot Alpha TV, he said the “importance” given from the Turkish side was “extreme”.

He then said that there were “many holy places of worship belonging to Christians in the North which have been vandalised.” He claimed that “Turkish and Turkish Cypriot officials did not show the same degree of sensitivity to them.”

It is the second time in the past two weeks that a mosque in the South has been defiled. The first was a fire bomb and graffiti assault on the Köprülü mosque in Limassol.

The Byzantine Imperial flag is yellow with a black, crowned,double-headed eagle, the symbol of the Palaiologos, the last Greek-speaking dynasty to rule from Constantinople.

President Mustafa Akıncı said: “Following the arson attack in Limassol, this incident should not be belittled and the Greek Cypriot administration should not let the perpetrators get away with it.”

Prime minister Ersin Tatar said in a written statement: “The second provocative act on mosques in the space of a week in South Cyprus cannot be treated as ‘ordinary’ or ignored.”

Deputy prime minister and foreign minister, Kudret Özersay, told BRT television: “The frequency and features being displayed in recent times is another example of the increase of xenophobia, which is uncivilised and unacceptable. The Greek Cypriot leadership should find those responsible and punish them and if this is not being done they are becoming a partner to this crime,” he said.

Religious Affairs head and Grand Müftü, Talip Atalay, called for an investigation. He said that they approached the Archbishopric to investigate the incident through the office of facilitating the interfaith dialogue between the island’s religious leaders.

Turkish vice president Fuat Oktay also reacted, posting on his social media account: “Another agitation and provocation with the hanging of the Byzantine flag on the Larnaca Tuzla mosque. The Greek Cypriot administration should stop encouraging anti-Turkish and Islamic dark groups . . . and get in front of this diseased mentality.”

Police spokesman, Christos Andreou, was quoted in Greek Cypriot press as saying that they were examining CCTV footage.