Missing children of Cyprus given final resting place after 46 years

GAZİMAĞUSA

Forty-six years after they were killed, 14 children who fell victim to Greek Cypriot terrorist organization EOKA-B’s violence, they have been given a final resting place.

The remains of a total of 14 children, seven girls and seven boys between the ages of four months and 15 years old, were buried with a state ceremony on Dec. 26 with the participation of the Turkish Cypriot leadership and officials.

At an emotionally charged funeral, the relatives of the victims joined Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar and other dignitaries at the Martyrs’ Cemetery in Maratha village of the divided island.

Speaking at the ceremony, Gürsel Benan, who heads an association for families of victims, said they remembered with deep sorrow the brutal attacks EOKA-B carried out against civilians from 16-months to 95-year-olds and the bitter face of the war.

Pointing out that the right to live is innate and inalienable, Benan noted that in a situation where the right to life is destroyed, other human rights cannot be mentioned.

On Aug. 14, 1974, a group of Greek Cypriot fanatics from neighboring villages and flanked by Greek Cypriot soldiers raided three Turkish villages: Maratha, Santalaris and Aloda in Gazimağusa (Famagusta) district.

The militants rounded up 126 Turkish Cypriots in a village square and executed those resisting the roundup, while the rest who did not resist were taken outside the village and were buried together after they were killed.