Greek Orthodox Church Damaged by Bomb Explosion

Country: Cyprus

Date of incident: August 1, 2004


Greek Orthodox Church in Northern Cyprus was damaged by bomb explosion in Cyprus conflict.

Since July 1974, when the Turkish army invaded 36% of the island, Cyprus has been divided into two parts. As far as Christian religious confessions are concerned, during these 30 years of occupation, 68 of the 82 churches have been destroyed to eliminate the country’s religious identity or transformed into mosques. It is the case for the Cathedral of Saint Nicholas in Famagosta. Report 2005 on Religious Freedom in the World – Aid to the Church in Need August 27th, 2004 – A bomb exploded before dawn inside a Greek Orthodox Church in Nicosia, a Turkish-occupied area of Northern Cyprus, causing damage but no injuries. The attack followed media reports that Turkish Cypriot extremist groups had vowed to prevent services planned for next week at the Saint Mamas church in celebration of its namesake saint’s day.