Showing the peace sign while taking a selfie is perfectly normal for us... right?

But did you know that the simple gesture is considered offensive in Turkey?

In a video posted to Instagram, South Korean content creator Tyongee was visiting the Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque in Istanbul and flashed a peace sign in front of a mosaic of the Virgin Mary and Jesus.

Two men immediately called out to Tyongee, warning her that the peace sign is forbidden in Turkey.

“In your culture, it means peace, but unfortunately in Turkey, it is raised about terrorism,” said one of the men. A visibly shocked Tyongee then apologised profusely.

The peace sign in the country has been adopted by the PKK, a Kurdish military group designated as a terrorist organisation by the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Tyongee was curious if finger hearts were also banned.

 “This one is okay, no problem,” the men assured her.

It seems many of her followers did not know about this and praised the men for calmly explaining it to her.

However, at least one netizen was not convinced and wrote: “It is not forbidden by law. They just saw that you were a foreign woman enjoying yourself and wanted to patronise you”.

Others countered that, legal or not, no one wants to be associated with terrorism.

You know what? You can’t go wrong with just a bright smile in a selfie, right?

Photos: tyongee/IG