CMP to begin annual public briefings on missing persons from January 2027

Nicosia, Cyprus. The Committee on Missing Persons in Cyprus (CMP) will begin holding annual public briefings on its work in the second half of January from 2027, the office of Presidential Commissioner Marios Hartsiotis said on Wednesday.

The briefings will provide updates for relatives of missing persons, their organisations, authorities, the media and other interested parties.

Briefing structure

The annual presentations will cover actions and initiatives undertaken during the previous year, results achieved, and updates on excavations and investigations, including findings and plans for the coming period.

The Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics will also present progress and results related to identification procedures.

Hartsiotis’ office said the initiative was in line with the commitment of President Nikos Christodoulides and the government to continue and intensify efforts until the fate of the last missing person has been ascertained.

Transparency and communication

According to the office, the briefings are intended to establish a consistent process of transparency and communication, providing relatives and the wider community with an overview of research progress, previous-year results, outstanding issues and future plans.

Exhumations and identifications

By the end of July, the CMP had exhumed 1,719 bodies and identified the remains of 1,081 people on the official list, as well as 217 others.

The remains of the 1,081 identified people have been returned to their families for dignified burials. Of those identified, 317 were Turkish Cypriots and 764 were Greek Cypriots.

So far this year, the remains of 18 people, all Turkish Cypriots, have been identified.

Committee background

The CMP was established in April 1981 under UN auspices through an agreement between the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities, following calls in two UN General Assembly resolutions to create such a mechanism.

Its project for the exhumation, identification and return of remains became operational in 2006. The European Union remains the project’s main financial contributor.