The Green Line in Cyprus

Around the ESBA

Map 7.....Through the ESBA to Famagusta



From L to R......The suburbs of Larnaca, the mixed village of Pyla, the abandoned Greek Cypriot village of Achna, the two connected areas of the ESBA, Turkish Famagusta and the abandoned town of Varosha.

To the NW of the ESBA is an area of land locally known as 'the lozenge' that used to contain a British accommodation area called Pergamos Camp, the name being taken from the nearby Turkish village.  
Pergamos Camp was very self-contained with its own shops and primary school but was no longer required from the late 1980s and was demolished in 1997.



The mini-roundabout at the entrance to the camp with the new mosque in Pergamos visible in the background



A sure sign of an earlier British presence.......cat's eyes used in the approach road to Pergamos Camp



The edge of 'the lozenge' borders directly onto Turkish Northern Cyprus with a distant observation post marked in the distance



Turkish Cypriot farmers utilize the land either side of the border which is not clearly demarcated

North of Xylotymvo (a small town which exists as a Greek enclave within the ESBA) is a large area of land that is farmed by Greek Cypriots.
The northern point is watched over by a Turkish OP.



These fields are used by Greek Cypriot farmers up to the northern limits of the ESBA.....the Turkish OP is marked



This very unusual location (marked in yellow) is where the Turkish border moves to within 50m of the main road
The difference in the fields either side of the line is visible in the above picture




Quite by chance, a scene common in 1974 was captured again in 2017.....the red warning sign concerning the border is marked



Fort Bravo was a British Army camp whose purpose was to preserve the integrity of the Eastern SBA (at Dhekelia) against any force and prevent any internal security situation developing. The base also protected the Athna Forest Refugee Camp.

At one time Achna was within the ESBA but the decision to build a by-pass to avoid military traffic passing through the village altered the boundary of the ESBA.
Achna was now outside the ESBA and was evacuated when Turkish forces advanced to the boundary in August 1974. 
A few miles beyond Achna, the ESBA narrows to 50m either side of the road connecting the bases of Dhekelia and Agios Nikolaos.
Turkish OPs to the north of the road observe Greek OPs to the south their positions interspersed with UN OPs.

The Author's Note: Those familiar with the history of Berlin may recognise in the road connecting the two parts of the ESBA, similarities with the Steinstücken before the Wall came down.



The abandoned village of Achna viewed from the ESBA boundary



Heading further east, a number of small unmanned UN posts (this one OP 133) are positioned to watch over a Turkish OP on the opposite side of the road



This is actually the sign for traffic driving from east to west.....the border is on the LHS when travelling in the other direction



A 4km stretch of what appears to be an ordinary road
However, it is the narrow corridor connecting the two parts of the EBSA......Turkish forces are on the LHS and Greek on the RHS
In several locations (on the LHS) you can see that the fields are cultivated only up to 50m away from the road
The OPs of both sides are a little further back and tend to occupy the high ground on the edge of the valley




Close the where the ESBA widens out to include the Agios Nicolaos base there was a large Slovakian UN camp (UN 139)
This extensive base occupied what was a packing factory




The camp is north of the ESBA boundary and, technically, in Northern Cyprus
All the land adjoining the camp perimeter (as in the picture above) is the Turkish north.