Presidential Commissioner calls on Turkey to provide information on missing in Cyprus
CNA – NICOSIA 18/3/2016 20:04
Turkey must provide information indicating the location of mass graves of missing persons, Presidential Commissioner Photis Photiou said on Friday, noting that it is a shame for humanity to be looking for missing persons forty two years after the Turkish invasion of Cyprus.
Information on sites where Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots are buried is continuous, Photiou told the press in Limassol, adding however that not all of it is valid or corroborated.
It is important, he underlined, for Turkey to provide information on mass graves. Photiou said that out of 1.519 missing persons the fate of 1.025 remains unknown. “After forty two years we are still behind and it`s a shame for humanity to be searching for missing persons since 1974”.
“CMP`s access to military zones was perhaps a positive step, but let`s not forget that here we will find 60-80 missing persons” he noted, adding that the mass graves are located in and around Kyrenia where major battles took place.
Turkey, he said, must give information about those people and indicate the sites where bones have been moved to.
Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkish troops invaded and occupied its northern third. Since then, the fate of hundreds of people remains unknown.
A Committee on Missing Persons has been established, upon agreement between the leaders of the two communities.
