REMAINS OF TURKISH CYPRIOT BROUGHT TO THE TRNC 48 YEARS AFTER HIS DEATH
THE remains of a Turkish Cypriot who was killed on July 20, 1974, while defending the village of Yalova (Piskobu/Episkopi) located near the southern British Sovereign Base Area, were brought to the TRNC last Friday to be buried at the Lefkoşa Martyrs Cemetery with full military honours.
Orhan Ismail was just 24 when he died on the first day of the Turkish Peace Operation. He was hastily buried in the Turkish cemetery in Yalova, as Turkish Cypriot civilians fled to the safety of the British base.
In 2018 his family requested that his remains be exhumed so they could be formally identified using DNA analysis and then buried in Lefkoşa.
One of his brothers, Yaşar Ismailoğlu, who travelled from London for the funeral service and burial, gave a tearful speech in which he spoke of Orhan Ismail’s bravery.
“Today we are at peace as we bid the final farewell that our brother Orhan Ismail, also known as Orhan Barut, who we have missed for the last 48 years and whose painful absence we have not forgotten for even one day, deserves.”
Mr Ismailoğlu said that when Mr Ismail and two cousins were sent to defend Yalova from the “most advanced and most dangerous position” they “took
their weapons without objection and rushed to that position”.
“And in that position, all three of them fought to the end and were martyred there,” Mr Ismailoğlu said, adding: “Our whole family and our villagers fought the enemy until the evening hours until they took refuge in the British bases . . . The Turkish Cypriots who lived on this island from 1955 to 1974 gave hundreds of martyrs and defended their villages, towns and lands by fighting bravely.
“They sacrificed their own lives for our future. . . We owe our lives today to you, to those who fought bravely like you.”
President Ersin Tatar also spoke at the funeral, saying: “If we live in peace on this land, it is thanks to our martyrs who gave their lives for the country. The heroism of our martyrs will never be forgotten.”