Nicosia: More than 5,000 unaccompanied Cypriot children may have been transferred to and hosted in Greece between 1974 and 1979, compared with an officially recorded figure of 2,000, figures presented on Tuesday before the parliamentary committee on refugees indicate. The figures were presented by Andreas Theodosiou, president of the Association of Unaccompanied Children Hosted in Greece 1974-1979.

According to Cyprus News Agency, Theodosiou stated that official data from the Ministry of Education put the number of children at 2,000. However, he noted that Ministry records also suggest another figure, which exceeds 5,000. He explained this discrepancy by highlighting that many children left for Greece at that time without being officially registered. Parents, relatives, or other individuals accompanied or transported them in an effort to remove them from the prevailing conditions in Cyprus following the Turkish invasion.

Theodosiou further explained that the association, through its activities and research, is working to identify individuals who were children at that time and were transferred to Greece but were not included in official records. He mentioned that the first group of children left for Greece on September 21, 1974, and according to official figures from the Ministry of Education, comprised 192 children. However, based on information being collected through the association's research, he estimates that the number of children in the first group may have exceeded 600.

Theodosiou added that children from that period were transferred to various locations, including Ilia, Kareas, Volos, and Thessaloniki. He also noted that testimonies continue to emerge from people who claim they were sent to Greece at that time without being officially registered.