Tayyip Erdogan to visit North Cyprus today

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is due in North Cyprus today where he will attend the opening ceremony of the Hala Sultan mosque in Haspolat, Lefkosa.

Hours after being sworn in as president of Turkey on Monday, Erdogan will make his first official overseas trip to the Turkish republic of North Cyprus where he will attend the opening ceremony of the Hala Sultan Mosque.

The Hala Sultan is a sized-down copy of the Selimiye mosque in Edirne, Turkey, built during the Ottoman empire.

The 3,000-capacity mosque built in classic Ottoman style, with its four minarets has fueled concern among some Turkish Cypriots that their secular society is under increasing dominance from Ankara.