Martyr Ömer Depreli, who went missing in Küçük Kaymaklı on 26 December 1963, was laid to rest yesterday with a military ceremony at the Tekke Garden, 54 years after his death. Depreli’s remains were found and identified during excavation works by the Committee on Missing Persons (CMP).

Depreli was killed and taken away from his home in Küçük Kaymaklı by a group of Greek Cypriots on 26 December 1963. His body was protected in the Lefkoşa General Hospital’s morgue, and then buried in mass graves at Ayvasıl. He was later moved and buried in Tekke Garden, in an unmarked grave.

Ömer Hasan Depreli’s remains were recently found by the CMP in the Tekke Garden, and were identified with DNA tests. Yesterday, he was buried in a properly identified grave, so that his family can visit after 54 years.