Xrístos' photostream

Greek Cypriot missing persons exhibition, Nicosia, Cyprus (2006). The images in the black frames show Greek Cypriots who were captured by the Turkish army following its invasion of the island in 1974. Those with faces circled were never seen alive again by their families. The faces numbered 2, 3 and 4 are those of Greek Cypriots who surrendered to Turkish forces. Following DNA testing of remains found by the UN-sponsored Committee on Missing Persons in Cyprus in 2009 it was discovered that they were executed immediately after the photo was taken and their bodies thrown down a well.

"Iannis Papayianni, was photographed accepting a cigarette from a Turkish soldier. His funeral will take place in Nicosia on Friday" - BBC online, 11 August 2009.

news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/8196106.stm
www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/apr/15/cyprus

"According to statistics released by the CMP, there are 1,464 Greek Cypriot and 494 Turkish Cypriot missing persons. So far, 690 sets of remains have been exhumed, from which 248 missing individuals have been identified and returned to their families, comprising of 195 Greek Cypriots and 53 Turkish Cypriot." - Cyprus Mail, 29 August 2010

Let's hope that as many Greek and Turkish Cypriots as possible can discover the fate of their loved ones and have some sort of closure to this tragedy.

Rather eerie space between two buildings in Nicosia, Cyprus. Beyond the bars and sandbags lie the occupied territories.

"No (pronounced 'ochi'): to the shameful plan, to catastrophe, to humiliation"
Protest sticker in Nicosia against the controversial UN-sponsored plan of 2004 to settle the Cyprus issue. Many Greek Cypriots felt they would become second class EU citizens who would be denied their legal, moral and human rights. As Cyprus is in the European Union, any EU national would have had the right to live anywhere on the island and to purchase any property even if the legal owner today is a refugee. But this basic EU right would have been denied to Cypriot citizens. Unsurprisingly, the plan was rejected in the referendum in the government controlled areas of the island.

Sticker in shop window, Nicosia. The sticker refers to the push to settle the Cyprus issue through the controversial Annan Plan of 2004, named after the then-UN Secretary General Kofi Annan. The vast majority of Greek Cypriots rejected the plan as it did not satisfy their aspirations for a truly free and reunited island. The plan would have violated the human and legal rights of Cypriots as citizens of the European Union to enjoy freedom of movement, settlement and ownership in their own country, though this would have been guaranteed to other EU nationals. Absurdly, the plan was not consistent with the UN's own resolutions including those that call for the return of all refugees.

Named after operation Atilla of 1974. Nicosia is the last divided capital city of the world.