Ayia Marina is the only church in Kythrea that remains in relatively good condition, the mayor of the occupied town, Petros Kareklas said on Saturday.

The mayor was speaking after the church service organised at the church with Bishop Gregorios of Mesaoria presiding at the service which saw around 120 attendees

He added that ‘police officers’ were present within the church’s precincts, without any issues, and the ceremony proceeded quietly and beautifully, without any hindrance.

The attendees were all moved witnessing the changes which have taken place such as deserted houses and churches repurposed for other uses, the mayor said. He cited the examples of the church of Chardakiotissa, now converted into a mosque, and the church of Ayia Anna, now functioning as a gym.

Referring to Ayia Marina, Kareklas told CNA it is a “relatively well-maintained church” as it was previously used as a dance school.

The church of Ayia Marina has undergone minor repairs thanks to the interest shown by the refugees of Kythrea and the Ecclesiastical Committee. “There are no iconostases or icons or pews, only the walls and the exterior, which are in relatively good condition,” he added, mentioning that the church’s outer walls were recently plastered.

But the religious paintings on the walls have disappeared long ago, as the Turks had whitewashed the walls with paint. “The only part of the church where wall paintings seem to exist is the upper section of the women’s balcony,” he said.

“Essentially, it is the only church in Kythrea that remains in good condition.”

He also referred to the church of Ayios Andronikos, which has no roof and was restored by the bicommunal Technical Committee for Cultural Heritage to prevent its complete collapse.

Responding to a question about whether other projects for the restoration of important monuments in Kythrea are underway, he explained that the only church restored by the Bicommunal Committee was Ayios Andronikos. “Repairs were made to prevent its collapse, the church was cleaned, and railings were installed to restrict public access,” he said.

But no permission was given to use the specific church.

“The only church in Kythrea for which we are given permission is Ayia Marina,” he said.

“We submitted an application for Ayia Marina months ago, and we received a response two weeks ago.” In other years, he added, “they would grant us their consent 2-3 days before the service.”

But the additional time, allowed for better preparation.

“Last year, only 30 people attended the service at Ayia Marina because permission was granted at the last minute, and we didn’t have enough time to organise as we would have liked.”