From the newspaper "Simerini" on Sunday
Conversely, time counts for the opening of the Deryneia roadblock. The Anastasiadis-Akkinci meeting on October 26th is expected to signal the implementation of the already reached agreement of May 2015 for the opening of the roadblock. Testimonies about mass executions and graves in the area are shocking.
The opening of Famagusta Avenue brings to light two underlying conflicting trends. On the one hand, proponents of re-prosecution policy see the Deryneia roadblock as a gateway through which gradual social, cultural and state reconnection between the two peoples will take place. On the other hand, most entrepreneurs in the free province of Famagusta see that the opening of a free road that will connect Deryneia with the occupied Famagusta will be fatal for a province, the free part of which depends mainly on tourism revenues.
The recent turnover of Greek Cypriots in the occupied territories for fuel, but also the lower prices in the tourism sector - accommodation and food - in the occupied territories, seem to strengthen the arguments of those who oppose, as these two data suggest potential risks to the country. . In addition, the fact that the primary sector, such as agriculture, which is the second most important for free Famagusta, has suffered an incalculable blow in recent years, both from the drought and from the green line regulation that presupposes free trade, is also taken into account. agricultural products such as potatoes, which are the main agricultural product of Kokkinohoria.
Opening preparations are underway
Work on the crossing points at the Deryneia roadblock in the free areas has already been completed. Nevertheless, on the part of the occupiers, the biggest delay of the pseudo-state is approaching the indecision, or rather the refusal to move the Turkish military outpost, which is a constant request of both the Greek Cypriot side and the United Nations as it is in a dead zone. From the balcony of that outpost, on August 14, 1974, Kenan Akin shot and killed Solomos Solomou, who died on the day of the funeral of his cousin Tassos Isaac, also killed by the Gray Wolves by the Wolves three days ago. of the peacekeeping force, enters a dead zone, climbs the mast and attempts to lower the Turkish occupation flag.
Of course, the recent statements of the so-called "prime minister" of the pseudo-state have also caused a sensation. free zones and that the opening of roadblocks aims to facilitate them. These statements have added more fuel to the fire, increasing the reactions of the supporters of the non-opening of the roadblock and leading to protest rallies to close the roadblocks.
Read also: DERYNIA: Protest against the opening of the roadblock (VIDEO)
At the crime scene
The executions of Tassos Isaac and Solomos Solomou at the Deryneia roadblock took place exactly twenty-two years after the mass executions of Greek Cypriot soldiers and civilians in the area of the roadblock.
The "pergolas of Perzenia", the area of the now occupied Deryneia that first became known for the contribution of their Jewish owner Ida Pershitz to the society of the first decades of the 20th century, became a synonym for horror and brutality after the Turkish invasion. of the Turkish invader. Numerous testimonies refer to mass executions and mass graves of Greek Cypriots in the area, mainly on August 17, a day when a large number of Famagusta residents tried to return home listening to a misleading announcement on the radio.
DEA: Confirmed testimonies
The representative of the Greek Cypriot side in the Commission of Inquiry into the Missing (DEA), Nestoras Nestoros confirmed to "S" the testimonies and reports of missing persons. According to him, most of the reports focus on the area "Pervolia tis Pertzenina" where excavations took place in 2017. In the area, said Mr. Nestoros, it is believed that there are more bones, while the CMP is waiting for permission to continue excavations. He also said that there was evidence of a burial site for eleven people.
On the other hand, Mr. Nestoros pointed out, the problem and the weakness for the Greek Cypriot side is that the studies concern areas of disappearance, with the result that the research is difficult. At the same time, he stressed that the Turkish Cypriot side must cooperate and provide important information on the points of the fighting, which would be very helpful.
"They executed six in front of my eyes"
According to shocking testimonies, most were ambushed by Turkish soldiers, including Turkish Cypriots. Tassos Koutsou, then 16, the half-brother of former MP Nikos Koutsou, told "S" that on August 17 they started with their father Sotiris who was then around 50, and his brother Panagiotis who was then 17, from Paralimni to go to their village Peristeronopigi, to get their cows. According to him, at some point, within the current occupied Deryneia, the Turkish army stopped them and got them out of the car. There, in an orange grove, he saw about twenty people gathered, both adults and children. They were forced to sit down. Every few minutes, two people would pick them up and take them to a nearby cold place. In front of him, as he reports, he saw a total of six people being executed. Their father Sotiris was taken to a nearby area along with another Greek Cypriot. He heard gunshots, but did not see the execution. Since then, his fate has been ignored. He and his brother Panagiotis were taken prisoner to various locations and were finally released in late September through an exchange process.
"All three of my children were abducted"
The second shocking testimony provided by "S" comes from Chrystalla Nekki Kyriakou from Kato Deryneia. Mrs. Chrystalla married in 1969 and had three children, Andreas, who in 1974 was 5 years old, and two twin girls, Kika and Maria, just three years old at the time. All of them are still missing.
Mrs. Chrystalla received the wrong return information and so she and her family started going back on August 17, 1974. There, the Turkish soldiers ambushed them. They were forced to stay at home, and a few days later, the Turks took her children and drove them out of the house. Today, Mrs. Chrystalla mourns the loss of her missing people, who she says were killed there in Kato Deryneia. Her twin daughters, her five-year-old son, her father-in-law and mother-in-law, her bride with her three young children and her son-in-law, are all missing.
"Simerini" newspaper of Sunday, October 21, 2018