The illegal settlement and usurpation of property in the occupied territories by Turkey was highlighted by MEP Costas Mavridis (DIKO – S&D) in the European Parliament's Defense and Security Committee in the discussion with the Director General of the humanitarian organization "Geneva Call" about its role, aimed at respecting humanitarian law in conflict areas.
In his intervention, Mr. Mavridis initially stated that he congratulated and praised the organization “Geneva Call” for its work and intentions to protect the civilian population in conflict areas around the world, which are open wounds and which were mentioned by various colleagues. Continuing, the Cypriot MEP stated the following: “I will focus on a “frozen conflict” on EU territory. I am referring, of course, to the ongoing occupation of part of the territory of the Republic of Cyprus by Turkey. The crimes committed in recent years, and continuing as we speak in this area, are included in the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court for humanitarian law. Specifically, I am referring to the crime of colonization which is also linked to the usurpation of Greek Cypriot properties in the occupied territory of the Republic of Cyprus.” Furthermore, Mr. Mavridis also referred to the hybrid attack against the Republic of Cyprus that Turkey and the occupation regime it has imposed, carry out from time to time by exploiting illegal immigration flows.
Based on the above, Mr. Mavridis asked the Director General of the organization if they had any contact with Turkey or its occupying regime, on this issue and if they intend to take action in this specific area, with the aim of preventing such crimes in the future. In his response, the Director General of “Geneva Call” clarified that he had not had any contact with Turkey or its regime, on the Cyprus issue, because such issues concern the states involved (Turkey-Cyprus), while they themselves focus on areas of conflict between organizations and not states.
