Big flags aren’t the exclusive domain of Turkey

Sir,

I was interested to read the October 12 letter from Chris Christofi of London referring to the star and crescented flag on the mountains overlooking Nicosia.

Hopefully, the removal of this antagonistic symbol above the home village of President Christofias will one day signal real progress in reunification discussions.

In the meantime, I wonder how many Greek Cypriots are aware of the inspiration for this piece of nationalistic propaganda.

Prior to July 1974, the Kyrenia range above Bellapais, overlooking Kyrenia, was “adorned” with the giant blue and white painted flag of a regional neighbour.

Apparently, it was more than an embarrassment for residents during the events as it was a handy target for fighter bombers to unload bomb racks before returning to Turkey.

Mark Johnson,
Nicosia
??

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.