August 1974: Memories of a Survivor

An eyewitness describes his experiences during the 1974 Turkish invasion of Cyprus. The man, then 27 years old, was in Lythrodontas during the coup.

Invasion: 'Wake up, the Turks have come,' he recalls his mother telling him. He was assigned to Kythrea, where confusion and disorganization prevailed. As he reports, they were not given military uniforms or weapons initially.

After the capture of Tziaos, they received weapons and uniforms. Meanwhile, the Junta fell, and Clerides took over. He visited RIK, where he met Spyros Papageorgiou.

On August 14, 1974, he was on guard duty in Tziaos. He found that the officers and soldiers had left. He then headed towards Famagusta and then to the British Bases. On August 16, he ended up in Lefkara and was discharged in late August.