"Famagusta" series draws angry reaction from Ankara

Famagusta is a television series by Mega, directed by Andreas Georgiou and written by Vanas Dimitriou. The case deals with the events that took place during the Turkish invasion of Famagusta in August 1974, the murders, the rapes, the tortures, the persecution of the Greek Cypriots, but also the aftermath of these events, in the present day. Despina Bembedeli, who plays Harita Mantoles, the woman-symbol of the island, who experienced the absolute horror of the cold-blooded murder of her relatives and the destruction of her homeland, Kyrenia, has made a sensation.

Turkish reactions

But the series has caused a stir in Turkey, which continues to posit that the bloody invasion was a peaceful operation.

The Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a statement claims that "the series entitled "Famagusta", which will be broadcast on a digital platform, serves the black propaganda" of the Greek Cypriots, adding that it "distorts historical events".

The representative of the ruling party AKP, Omer Celik, also expressed his strong reaction.

"It is very disturbing that a series that distorts the Cyprus Peace Operation of 1974 and makes propaganda for the Greek side will be broadcast on a cinema platform from September 20. We cannot accept that the intervention that brought peace and established justice becomes the target of Greek propaganda.

The peacekeeping operation in Cyprus, the heroic Turkish soldier, peace and justice cannot be targeted through this series," Celik wrote characteristically in X.

Producer reacts

Koullis Nikolaou gives his own answer to the Turkish reactions that have arisen for the Famagusta series.

One of the producers of the series spoke to SKAI about Ankara's anger after Netflix's decision to include Mega's popular series in its content.

"It is a product of fiction and the viewer knows it. Anyone who questions the events, I say it like Koullis Nikolaou, I can host the Minister of Culture to come to Cyprus and talk to the people who have experienced the events and realize for himself if it is a distortion. The reactions were there last year as well, now they became more intense because of Netflix," said Mr. Nikolaou.