A Divine Liturgy was carried out for the first time in 50 years in the Turkish-occupied Armenian Church of Virgin Mary on Sunday, Gibrahayer Magazine reports.
The Liturgy was carried out by the Armenian Archbishop Varoujan Hergelian,
The Armenian representative in the Cyprus Parliament Vartkes Mahdessian as well as Armenian Church Committee Chairman Sebouh Tavitian also addressed the first ceremony in more than half a century that was also attended by representatives of different religious denominations.
The Church provided shelter for thousands who fled the Armenians Genocide between 1915-1923.
The Church Complex, which was in a very bad condition, was restored between 2008-2013 by UNDP-ACT and USAID funding following the initiative of the American Ambassador John Koenig.
