Palmas acknowledges ‘negligence of national guard officers’ in TNT case

The internal investigation into the disappearance of explosives during a national guard exercise has identified omissions and dereliction of duty by officers involved, defence minister Vasilis Palmas admitted on Saturday.

Speaking on CyBC, Palmas said the administrative inquiry had been completed with the submission of its report, while a separate police investigation remains under way.

The 13.6 kilograms of TNT that went missing during a training exercise at the Kalo Chorio firing range in January have not yet been recovered.

“The report identifies responsibilities and serious omissions by officers who took part in the exercise,” Palmas conceded, adding that disciplinary measures would be determined internally under national guard regulations.

He stressed that public concern centres on the criminal aspect of the case and the recovery of the explosives.

“What matters most to society is the criminal investigation and finding the explosives that were lost due to unprofessional conduct,”

The TNT disappeared on January 29 during an engineer training exercise involving a controlled detonation.

When the blast failed, personnel followed safety procedures and waited before returning to the site, where two explosive devices containing a total of 13.6kg of TNT were found to be missing.

Drone footage later confirmed the material had been in place shortly before its disappearance, ruling out an unrecorded detonation and leading authorities to treat the incident as a possible theft.

Palmas described the internal investigation as “a substantive step in recording the facts and clarifying the circumstances” but cautioned against expectations of swift conclusions from the criminal probe.

“The police investigation continues and we hope the material will be found,” he assured.

He reiterated that the quantity involved poses a serious risk if it falls into criminal hands, while rejecting criticism that political responsibility had been mishandled.

Responsibility, he said, must be assessed through established disciplinary and judicial procedures.

New information emerging this week confirms that the disciplinary investigation remains on schedule despite changes within the senior command.

Defence ministry sources said the collection of depositions linked to brigadier-general Alkis Alkiviades has been completed and that his recent discharge does not affect either the substance or the timetable of the inquiry.

Although Alkiviades was among several senior officers relieved of duties following routine annual evaluations, officials stressed the decision was “administrative and unrelated to the TNT case”.

The drafting of the final disciplinary report will be completed by another senior officer who remains in active service, within the timeframe set by Palmas.

“The procedure is continuing normally,” a defence source said.

“The change of officer does not alter the substance or the schedule of the investigation.”

At this stage, the disciplinary inquiry has found no indication of criminal intent.

If disciplinary breaches are confirmed at a later phase, those involved will be called before a disciplinary council, with the final decision resting with the chief of the general staff, Georgios Karayiannis.

Alongside the internal process, the criminal investigation by Larnaca police continues, focusing on locating the missing explosives and examining all possible circumstances surrounding their disappearance.

No arrests have been announced to date.

Palmas has repeatedly warned that the missing TNT “poses great risk to human lives” if it ends up “in the hands of individuals with illegal intentions”, while insisting that due process must be allowed to run its course.