Russian Tourists Detained in Istanbul After Reading the Bible Inside Hagia Sophia

A Russian couple vacationing in Turkey has been placed in a detention center for foreign nationals after authorities detained them for reading the Bible inside Istanbul's Hagia Sophia. The couple now faces deportation as Russian diplomats work to clarify their legal status. Tourists Detained After Bible Reading Inside Hagia Sophia Victoria F., 35, and her husband, Igor F., 32, arrived in Istanbul from Moscow on July 13. The following day, they visited Hagia Sophia, one of the city's most famous landmarks. According to Ostorozhno, Novosti, Igor took out a Bible he had brought with him and began reading from it inside the building. Igor said security personnel immediately surrounded the couple and escorted them out of the mosque before taking them to a police station in Istanbul's Fatih district. At the time, officers were deciding whether to keep them in custody or transfer them to a deportation center.