Martyrs who fell while defending towns, villages and enclaves during the second phase of the Turkish Peace operation that liberated the Turkish Cypriot people are continuing to be remembered with ceremonies.

On August 15, 1974, the men of the village of Taşkent were rounded up by Greek Cypriots and murdered.

A commemoration ceremony was held this morning to commemorate the Taşkent Martyrs.

The ceremony began with the laying of wreaths, a minute’s silence being observed, the firing of shots in tribute and flags raised to the national anthem.

The first speech at the ceremony was delivered by Erdinç Erdağlı, the President of the Committee of Families of the Taşkent Martyrs who said that the pain and suffering experienced 49 years ago will never be forgotten.

“If we have a state today under which we live freely, we owe it to our martyrs,” Gürsel Benan, the President of the Society of Martyrs’ Families and Disabled War Veterans said in his speech.

He said that the annual commemoration of martyrs aims to express gratitude to martyrs and veterans and keep alive the memory of their heroic struggle.

“We must never forget the honourable struggle of our martyrs who sacrificed their lives so that we could live freely and peacefully, nor the innocent people forced into exile and indiscriminately killed by the Greek-Cypriot duo living with the ENOSIS dream.”

President Ersin Tatar, who also spoke at the ceremony, expressed that they had gathered to commemorate the martyrs of Taşkent, Tatlısu, and Terazi.

He said that the years between 1963 and 1974 were filled with great sorrow and that the Turkish Cypriot people had reached these days at a great cost.

Tatar added that the mass killings that occurred hold a significant place as a war crime in human history.

“Unfortunately, despite all the witnesses and evidence proving the involvement of killers and terrorists in these crimes, the Greek Cypriot administration chooses to remain silent instead of taking action and bringing those responsible to justice. We haven’t forgotten the fact that the UN Peacekeeping Force also stood by as these massacres happened, and we won’t let it be forgotten,” he said.

Tatar also said that the Turkish Cypriot people will never give consent to a settlement that does not safeguard the continuation of sovereign equality, equal international status, Türkiye’s guarantees and the presence of Turkish troops on the island.

“These issues are non-negotiable,” he said.

The ceremony at the Taşkent Martyrs’ Monument concluded with a visit to the martyrs’ cemetery.

Meanwhile, two separate ceremonies will be held this afternoon to celebrate Gazimağusa’s liberation