Northern Cyprus honors 15 martyrs and opens new memorial museum

A state ceremony was held in Northern Cyprus to bury 15 Turkish Cypriot martyrs whose identities were recently confirmed through DNA analysis by the Missing Persons Committee. These individuals, including two infants, were victims of massacres in the Muratağa, Atlılar, and Sandallar villages during the 1974 conflict.

Alongside the burials, the Muratağa-Atlılar-Sandallar Martyrs Museum, established by the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TİKA), was officially opened. The museum is housed in a renovated 1930s primary school in Sandallar, where many students were killed. It features personal belongings, photographs, and letters of the victims to preserve the historical memory of the events.

High-ranking officials, including Turkish Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz and TRNC President Tufan Erhürman, attended the ceremonies. Officials emphasized that the museum serves as a site of memory to ensure the atrocities are not forgotten by future generations and to honor the lives of those lost.