ENGLISH SECTION
04/09/2025 | 20:13
Leaders of the Congressional Hellenic Caucus: Letter to Marco Rubio for the unlawful arrest and detention of five Greek-Cypriots in occupied Cyprus
The leaders of the Congressional Hellenic Caucus sent a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio for the unlawful arrest and detention of five Greek – Cypriots in Turkish-occupied Cyprus.
Dina Titus, Chris Pappas, Gus M. Bilirakis and Nicole Malliotakis ask that the State Department, through the U.S. Embassies in Nicosia and Ankara, engage with those in the occupied area to demand the release of the Greek-Cypriots being illegally detained for exercising their human right to visit their ancestral homes.
They also believe that The State Department must also hold Turkey accountable for its ongoing violations in Cyprus and push for the end of the illegal occupation of the island.
The letter to Marco Rubio:
September 4, 2025
The Honorable Marco Rubio
Secretary of State
U.S. Department of State
2201 C Street, NW
Washington, DC 20520
Dear Secretary Rubio,
As leaders of the Congressional Hellenic Caucus concerned with the continued illegal forcible division of the Republic of Cyprus, we are deeply troubled by the unlawful arrest and detention of five Greek-Cypriots in Turkish-occupied Cyprus.
These arrests are politically motivated and unlawful, and threaten the bizonal, bicommunal comprehensive settlement that the State Department has sought to reunify the island.
On July 19, 2025, five elderly Greek-Cypriots were arrested in the village of Trikomo, located in Turkish-occupied Cyprus, while visiting their ancestral properties. The individuals were unlawfully charged with illegal entry, espionage, and disturbing the peace.
They were
subsequently detained under questionable legal procedures, subjected to marathon court sessions, and are currently being held in harsh prison conditions despite suffering from chronic health issues.
The unlawful arrest of five Greek-Cypriots by the Turkish authorities for visiting their ancestral homes is cruel and politically motivated.
I led a letter to @SecRubio urging the State Department to hold Turkey accountable for this and its many human rights violations against… pic.twitter.com/4SyDf9yp5F
— Dina Titus (@repdinatitus) September 4, 2025
These detentions occurred shortly after the fifty-first anniversary of the 1974 Turkish invasion of Cyprus and are seen as retaliation amid increasing legal action against illegal property developments in the northern area of the island where the Government of the Republic of Cyprus does not exercise effective control.
Recently, the five Greek-Cypriots briefly appeared at a military court having spent a total of twenty-six days in custody. During their time in custody, the occupational government ignored requests for medical attention for the Greek-Cypriots. In one case, the “interior ministry” in the occupied area ignored a request for a machine to help with serious sleep apnea in one of the accused.
In light of this serious escalation by the Turkish authorities, we ask that the State Department, through the U.S. Embassies in Nicosia and Ankara, engage with those in the occupied area to demand the release of the Greek-Cypriots being illegally detained for exercising
their human right to visit their ancestral homes.
The State Department must also hold Turkey accountable for its ongoing violations in Cyprus and push for the end of the illegal occupation of the island.
Sincerely,
Dina Titus
Member of Congress
Chris Pappas
Member of Congress
Gus M. Bilirakis
Member of Congress
Nicole Malliotakis
Member of Congress
