-
.
- Ελληνικά
[...] A terrible summer for the people,
they took the dead through the back door to St. John's,
they said the coffins couldn't hold them.
[...]
You knew him differently
the Cypriot sun [...]
Our compatriot poet and writer Lefkios Zafeiriou in his poem "15.7.1974" describes the horror and devastation experienced by our people in the bleak summer of 1974.
Those tragic days, which left an indelible mark on our country, determining its subsequent historical course.
Sensing the magnitude of the tragedy, memories mentally return to the black July of '74.
To the treacherous coup and the death that the fratricidal conflict wrought.
To the extreme absurdity of hatred and the chaotic situation that prevailed, and to the nightmare that followed with the disastrous Turkish invasion five days later.
The civil strife, which like a nightmare devoured the bowels of our homeland, opened wide the back door to Turkey and allowed it to implement its dichotomous planning, which it had been preparing for more than a decade.
On July 20, Turkey invaded Cyprus.
Prime Minister Ecevit describes the invasion as a simple peacekeeping intervention to restore constitutional order.
[...]
Undeterred, the Turkish air force bombs towns and villages.
Napalm bombs burn forests and civilians.
The streets are filled with refugees fleeing their homes [...]
[...] Women and children are trapped in churches and schools.
Men are taken to concentration camps in Turkey or disappear ... forever...
The shocking narrative of the internationally renowned Cypriot filmmaker Michael Cacoyannis in his documentary "Attila '74 - The Rape of Cyprus" outlines the horrors of the Turkish invasion.
Once again, the lads of Cyprus were called to arms to defend their homeland. They were called to defend the freedom and territorial integrity of the Republic of Cyprus against an invader superior in arms and means.
Costas Pittas, whom we commemorate today, responded positively to the call of the homeland.
Fifty years after his death, gazing from afar at the sacred site of his altar, we lay down our crowns of respect and gratitude.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Kostas Pittas was born on 31 January 1954 in Panagra, Kyrenia. He was the fourth of nine children in the family of Andreas and Marina Pitta.
From a young age he assisted his father, an industrial farmer and stock breeder, in the strenuous struggle to secure the necessities for the care of his family.
After completing his studies at the Primary School, he continued his studies at the Eighth Grade High School of Vasileia.
After completing his studies at the Primary School, he continued at the Eighth Grade High School of Vasileia.
After completing his studies at the Primary School, he continued his studies at the Eighth Grade High School of Vasileia. He then enlisted in the National Guard and served in the 33rd Commando Squadron.
The opportunity to wear the glorious and honored green beret of the National Guard Commando Forces filled him with pride and pushed him to give his best in every aspect of his military service.
The opportunity to wear the glorious and honored green beret of the National Guard Commando Forces filled him with pride and pushed him to give his best in every aspect of his military service.
Upon completion of his military duties, in an effort to acquire all the necessary skills for a better professional future, he attended a series of courses at the Productivity Center and earned a lathe operator's license.
But nothing foresaw for him and his family the great evil that would follow a few months later.
On the day of the 1974 Turkish invasion, the National Guard Commando Squadrons were ordered to implement their Operational Plans. They envisaged a night assault to occupy the hilltops of the Pentadaktylus surrounding the Ayrta crossing, with the aim of neutralizing the Turkish outposts and preventing the fusion of the beachhead of the landing forces with the Turkish Cypriot enclave of Kioneli.
Kostas Pittas turned up to report to the 33rd Commando Squadron, which was based in Pella Pais.
But this was not possible, since not only did he fail to reach the headquarters of the squadron in time, whose facilities were destroyed by enemy air force, but he was in mortal danger trying to report to it.
He ended up on the peaks of Pendadactyl along with hundreds of other reservists who failed to join their units. Along with about 30 other commandos, they were eventually placed under the command of the 366 Recruiting Battalion. From there he took part in a mission to intercept the Turkish forces, with the aim of preventing the widening of the bridgehead that had been created.
The fight quickly developed into a thrilling battle against powerful Turkish forces that in the meantime managed to land a large number of tanks and armoured vehicles.
They were quickly surrounded and fought an epic melee in all directions, displaying unparalleled bravery and valour, but suffering many casualties.
Subsequently, following new orders, the division, of which Kostas was a member, manned positions at Kyparissovouno, on the outskirts of Pentadaktylou and then on an opposite hill northeast of the village of Agridaki, in order to counter a possible new attempted advance of the Turkish troops.
During the ceasefire and until the beginning of the second phase on 14 August, the Turks continued their offensive actions in order to expand the bridgehead and capture strategic positions in the Pentadaktylos.
At dawn on 31 July, they launched a new fierce attack on the National Guard positions, followed by a furious exchange of fire.
As the battle was becoming unequal for the National Guard, a tank shell hit a point near the battle position from which Kostas Pittas was defending, seriously wounding him.
His comrades-in-arms rushed to his side and after ascertaining his serious injury, gave him first aid. Due to the seriousness of his condition, they boarded a vehicle to transport him to a clinic in Morphou, which served as a temporary hospital.
At the height of Kapouti village, Kostas Pittas breathed his last, succumbing to his wounds.
His body was buried in the presence of his family the next day at the Morphou cemetery.
During the decades that passed, his family, his parents and siblings, experienced more intensely the unbearable pain of losing their beloved child and brother, as they were unable to light a candle or leave a few flowers at his grave.
As part of the Missing Persons' Committee's programme, in 2020 his remains were returned to be buried with the honours due to the heroes of our homeland. He now rests with the other spirited defenders of Cyprus at the Mound of Makedonitissa.
His late father Andreas passed away in 1998, with the grief of his son's loss etched in his soul.
His joyful mother, with a heart full of pain but also of relief, said goodbye to her child for the second time and two years later she too passed away, certain that her son had found his own resting place.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Half a century later, the deep wounds caused by Turkish intransigence are still fresh and unhealed.
Thousands of families experienced refugeeism in their own homeland.
Parents lost their children forever. Their absence was an eternal burden on their souls, which nothing could alleviate.
Children, after the loss of a parent, had no choice but to become a father or mother in their families.
Grandparents lived out the rest of their lives and left this world with the unbearable pain of losing their grandchildren.
In the face of the sacrifice of the heroically fallen defenders of our homeland, we have a duty to consider our own responsibility towards our history.
We owe it to ourselves to praise their unswerving faith in the difficult moments of Cyprus and the immense mental reserve with which they faced every danger.
They fought their own battle, unyielding, loyal defenders of the homeland and taught us lessons of bravery and self-denial.
In the same way, we must continue the struggle to claim our inalienable rights. We declare repeatedly that we will not compromise with the status quo and the prolonged Turkish occupation for five decades. We will not compromise with Turkey's unacceptable proposal for a two-state solution. We will not compromise with a solution proposal that divides our country.
We owe Cyprus the future it deserves.
Despite Turkey's revisionist rhetoric, we continue our efforts to resume talks on the basis of the agreed framework and UN Security Council resolutions.
Through an honest and sincere dialogue, we seek to offer the long-suffering Cyprus a viable and workable solution and our compatriots the prospect of peace, security, prosperity and progress.
Only then will the air of freedom and peace be able to blow again on the island.
Only then will the sacrifice of Kostas Pitta and all the fallen defenders of our homeland be vindicated.
May their memory and the glory that will accompany them be eternal.
Thank you.
(AF/AS)
Contents of this article including associated images are belongs PIO
Views & opinions expressed are those of the author and/or PIO
Source
