Nicosia:The progress in efforts to determine the fate of missing persons was discussed at a meeting between House President Annita Dimitriou and Maria Kalbourtzi, President of the Panhellenic Committee of Parents and Relatives of Unregistered Prisoners and Missing Persons of the Cyprus Tragedy.

According to Cyprus News Agency, during the meeting, Demetriou emphasized the ongoing struggle to determine the fate of the missing as a critical message that should be delivered at every opportunity until the fate of the last missing person is clarified.

She highlighted that clarifying this aspect of the Cyprus tragedy is a supreme duty to the families still awaiting answers about their loved ones. Kalbourtzi expressed gratitude to the President of the House for her continuous support and stressed the importance of keeping the issue of missing persons a priority for the relevant bodies and of continuing joint efforts to raise awareness of this humanitarian issue internationally.

Kalbourtzi was accompanied by Nikos Sergides, President of the Pancyprian Organization of Relatives of Unregistered Prisoners and Missing Persons, Vice President Yiannakis Kolios, and member Maria Leontiou. The division of Cyprus since 1974 has left the fate of hundreds of individuals unknown, prompting the establishment of a Committee on Missing Persons. This committee aims to exhume, identify, and return the remains of 492 Turkish Cypriots and 1,510 Greek Cypriots, who went missing during the inter-communal conflicts of 1963-1964 and in 1974.

Statistical data from the CMP website as of August 31 indicates that out of 2,002 missing persons, 1,719 have been exhumed and 1,082 identified. Of the 1,510 Greek Cypriot missing persons, 765 have been identified, leaving 745 still missing. Additionally, 317 out of 492 Turkish Cypriot missing persons have been identified, with 175 still unaccounted for.