Nicosia to ask for excavation of site in Famagusta where two missing reported buried

Presidential Commissioner Photis Photiou said on Tuesday he has asked the Greek Cypriot representative on the Committee on Missing Persons (CMP) to ask, for humanitarian reasons, for the immediate excavation of a site in Famagusta were two Greek Cypriot missing persons are buried, according to information published in the media.

Photiou noted that it is not the first time in the last few years that information is published about mass graves in occupied Famagusta.

He added that “we had also asked for the immediate recording, mapping and protection of all sites which are within the so called military zone of the Turkish army so that they will be excavated without further delay.”

Photiou said that the information published on Monday in the Turkish Cypriot press and the Greek Cypriot media once again highlights the serious problems which the occupation force creates, that constitute an obstacle to efforts to achieve progress.

He noted that the specific site, according to the media stories, is probably within a military zone and if that is the case, there is no potential for immediate access for research and excavations.

Moreover he noted that a long-standing request for decades is to be able to study the archives of the Turkish army.