Famagusta: A tale of historical revisionism?

Famagusta is set to debut on Netflix on September 20. This production has already ignited fierce debates for its blatant distortion of historical events on the island of Cyprus.

A collaborative product of Greek and Southern Cypriot filmmakers, Famagusta appears to have a singular narrative focus: the portrayal of Cyprus as a victim of so-called Turkish aggression in the 1974 Cyprus Peace Operation.

The series, according to its critics, offers a historical distortion, framing the 1974 Turkish intervention as the inception of the Cyprus problem. It glosses over the deep-seated conflicts and the years of violence that preceded it.

As an island steeped in history and conflict, Cyprus island has long been a stage for violence, with Turkish Cypriots facing persecution and genocidal attacks for decades. The Greek side’s central claim in the series is that the Cyprus issue began with the 1974 Turkish intervention.

“We know that this is not the case. The real problem was the Greek side’s unyielding desire for Enosis—the annexation of the island to Greece,” says Ismail Sahin, a Professor of International Relations at Bandirma Onyedi Eylul University.

“The Cyprus issue began in 1963 due to the terror and armed actions directed at Turkish Cypriots by the Greeks; the 1974 operation is the consequence of the events of 1963,” Sahin adds.

The Akritas Plan, initiated on December 21, 1963, was intended to remove Turkish Cypriots from the political landscape within 48 hours, paving the way for Enosis. Sharing the same goal of uniting Cyprus with Greece, the EOKA (National Organisation of Cypriot Fighters), established in 1954, carried out numerous attacks on Turkish Cypriots from 1957 to 1974.

“But when we look at the Cyprus issue from the Greek perspective, they start the entire narrative from 1974, not what preceded” he explains.

Veterans debunk myths

By the time Turkish paratroopers landed on the island’s northern shores in July 1974, the situation had become untenable. Turkish Cypriots had spent more than a decade under siege.

Professor Ata Atun shares a similar view, emphasising that Türkiye stepped in as the guarantor state after Greece declared its takeover of Cyprus and when the terrorist organisation EOKA B and the Greek National Guard started attacking Turkish Cypriots.

“The Greek Cypriots, who maintain that the Cyprus issue originated in 1974 and have rewritten history to suit their needs, are currently attempting to convince the world that they were the victims of 1974 by using false information and fantastical stories that they cling to,” explains Atun, Dean of the Faculty of Engineering at Girne-based Cyprus Science University.

“For eleven years, we were restricted to three percent of the island. Our communities (Turkish Cypriots) were plundered and set on fire,” Atun adds.

“Assuming you are going to deceive everyone, how will you deceive us? I took part in the July 20, 1974, military action that was authorised by international law. The claim that ‘Turkish troops fired at people and the Turkish army bombarded civilian communities’ is something I have never seen or heard of. This is a totally untrue accusation meant to harm one’s reputation.”

Foundation of a new nation state

The year 1974 saw the dawn of a new era with Türkiye’s Peace Operation, a decisive moment that divided the island into two separate states and ended decades of unrest.

Five decades ago, on July 20, elite Turkish paratroopers, supported by tanks and fighter jets, descended on the northern part of Cyprus island in one of modern Türkiye’s largest and most significant military interventions.

The precise and rapid military action of 1974 aimed to protect Turkish Cypriots who were under threat of religious and ethnic cleansing by radical factions among the Greek Cypriots.

A month later, when the operation concluded, the foundation for a new nation state was laid.

In 1983, the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) was established, and it marks this historic event by celebrating July 20 each year as Peace and Freedom Day.

The 1974 operation not only rescued Turkish Cypriots from mass extermination but also prevented Cyprus island from being annexed by Greece, ensuring the island’s bi-communal independence.

Ulvi Keser, a professor at Final International University, argues that the individuals responsible for turning the island into a bloodbath and killing both Turkish and Greek Cypriots were, in reality, Greek Cypriots themselves.

“Who made the traitor Yeoryos Grivas establish the EOKA terror organisation in the 1950s? Who turned the island into a bloodbath starting from April 1, 1955? Who drove the EOKA into bloody actions until 1959, and again until 1963? Who destroyed the Republic of Cyprus, founded in 1960, on December 21, 1963? Who forced us to endure what we now call Bloody Christmas?” he asks.

“The answer to all these questions is the EOKA, Yeoryos Grivas, Makarios, Polikarpos Yorgacis’s men, and ultimately the Greek Cypriots themselves.”

Keser further points out that the Greeks are fully aware of the EOKA-B terror organisation’s brutality and the thousands of Greek Cypriots killed by their own people between July 15 and 20, but they still choose to participate in this dirty propaganda.

“You will forget all of this, you will ignore all of this, but you will slander the operation that was launched on July 20 to bring peace to the island—it’s unacceptable.”

Significant backlash

Originally aired in 24 episodes on Greece’s Mega TV channel, Famagusta has been met with sharp criticism, particularly from Türkiye, for what many see as a skewed and misleading portrayal of the events leading up to and following the 1974 Cyprus Peace Operation.

Last week, Türkiye’s Foreign Ministry condemned the series, calling it “a great disrespect to the cherished memories of the Turkish Cypriots who were massacred by Greek Cypriot gangs between 1963 and 1974.” The ministry added that such “futile attempts to reflect the facts differently from what they are” only strengthen Türkiye’s resolve to defend its stance on Cyprus.

Professor Sahin says that by creating a sense of victimhood and emotional appeal through this platform, Greek Cyprus aims to strengthen public support for their cause, thereby putting pressure on both Türkiye and the Turkish Cypriots, and aligning global public opinion behind them.

“The Greek side has already shown that they are not in favour of solving the Cyprus issue through negotiations. Their goal is to internationalise the Cyprus issue, to use the pressure they’ve built on the Turkish side through international community support, forcing the Turkish side to make concessions and accept the Greek narrative,” he explains.

The President of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) Ersin Tatar also condemned the controversial series, stating that the 1974 Cyprus Peace Operation was essentially “a military intervention that saved Turkish Cypriots from genocide”.

Tatar echoed the words of former Turkish Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit, who at the time declared, “We are bringing peace to Cyprus with our intervention.” The parallels Tatar draws between the events in Cyprus island and the current situation in Gaza underscore the emotional weight this history still carries. “Before 1974, Turkish Cypriots were subjected to various massacres, buried alive in mass graves; what is happening in Gaza today happened in Cyprus, and the whole world watched,” he remarked.

Professor Ata Atun pointed to what he describes as the Greek Cypriot Administration’s success in “hiding the massacres and genocide against Turkish Cypriots” from the global narrative.

This revisionism has allowed Greek Cypriots to position themselves as victims, while obscuring the true scale of the atrocities committed against Turkish Cypriots between 1963 and 1974, according to Atun.

In the end, Famagusta is more than just a television series. It’s a battle for historical memory.