Deputy Minister of National Defence Thanasis Davakis Attends Commemorative Events for the 113th Anniversary of the Liberation of Ioannina

Deputy Minister of National Defence Thanasis Davakis Attends Commemorative Events for the 113th Anniversary of the Liberation of Ioannina

February 21, 2026

On Saturday 21 February 2026, the Deputy Minister of National Defence Thanasis Davakis, attended the commemorative events for the 113^thAnniversary of the Liberation of Ioannina as representative of the Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis. The ceremony was also attended by the President of the Republic Kostas Tasoulas.

Mr. Davakis, accompanied by the Chief/HNDGS, General Dimitrios Choupis, went to the Metropolitan Church of St. Athanasios, where a doxology was held, officiated by His Eminence, the Metropolitan of Ioannina, Mr. Maximos. Subsequently, he visited the Headquarters of the 8^thMotorised Infantry Brigade where the President of the Republic laid a wreath at the Memorial to the Fighters of the Battle of Bizani, followed by a parade of military units and civilian organisations.

After the end of the ceremony, Mr. Davakis stated the following:

"It is with particular emotion that I am in Ioannina today, 113 years after the liberation of the city from the Ottoman yoke following nearly five centuries of slavery. The struggle for the liberation of Ioannina was the most important military confrontation between Greece and the Ottoman Empire on the Epirus front. Yet the success of those days was not only a military victory, but also a landmark which sealed the unity of Hellenism.

The anniversary of 21 February 1913 is not simply a historical reminder. It is a day deeply engraved in our collective memory, since it marked the incorporation of Epirus into the national territory. Ioannina, a symbol of struggle and sacrifice, reminds us that national unity, unanimity, and faith in our values are the strongest guarantees for the future."