← National days · Northern Cyprus (TRNC)
July 20 1974· State day
Northern Cyprus: Peace and Freedom Day
Turkish troops landed in Cyprus on 20 July 1974; Northern Cyprus marks the day as Peace and Freedom Day.
In July 1974 a military coup aimed at uniting Cyprus with Greece took place on the island, gravely endangering the security of the Turkish Cypriots. On 20 July 1974 Türkiye, as a guarantor power, launched its Peace Operation on the island, with the first forces landing on the coast near Kyrenia.
For Turkish Cypriots the day marks the end of long years of hardship and the coming of security and freedom. After the operation the Turkish Cypriots established their own administration in the north of the island, which paved the way for the proclamation of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus in 1983.
The holiday
20 July is celebrated in the TRNC as Peace and Freedom Day, with an official parade in Lefkoşa attended by senior guests from Türkiye, a ceremony at the Peace and Freedom Monument near Kyrenia and a display by the Turkish Stars aerobatic team.
Video
Photos
The Peace and Freedom Monument near Kyrenia · János Korom Dr. >17 Million views from Wien, Austria / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0 
The Peace and Freedom Monument · János Korom Dr. >17 Million views from Wien, Austria / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0 
Around the monument on the Kyrenia coast · János Korom Dr. >17 Million views from Wien, Austria / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0 
Turkish Stars air show in Kyrenia · Seksen iki yüz kırk beş / Wikimedia Commons · CC0 
Kyrenia harbour from the castle · A.Savin / Wikimedia Commons · FAL 
Golden Beach on the Karpas peninsula · Michal Klajban / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0 
Victory Monument in Famagusta · A.Savin / Wikimedia Commons · FAL
Northern Cyprus (TRNC): other days
- January 1New Year's Day
- April 23Türkiye: National Sovereignty and Children's Day
- May 1Labour Day
- May 19Türkiye: Commemoration of Atatürk, Youth and Sports Day
- August 1Northern Cyprus: Social Resistance Day
- August 30Türkiye: Victory Day
- October 3Founding of the Organization of Turkic States
- October 29Republic Day of Türkiye
- November 15Founding of Northern Cyprus
- December 21Northern Cyprus: Week of National Struggle and Martyrs
- 12 Rabi al-Awwal in the Islamic calendar; moves about 11 days earlier each yearTRNC: Mawlid (the Prophet's Birthday)
- 10 Dhu al-Hijjah in the Islamic calendar — the feast of the Hajj pilgrimage; moves about 11 days earlier each yearEid al-Adha
- 1 Shawwal in the Islamic calendar — the end of the Ramadan fast; moves about 11 days earlier each yearEid al-Fitr