The government published on Thursday afternoon the report of the American experts from the ATF, presenting it as proof of its commitment to transparency and the release of every relevant document. Yet, for much of the public, expectations had been set so high for this long-awaited report that common sense alone has been enough to cast doubt on a number of its findings.
From the very beginning, the narrative surrounding two half-burnt cigarette butts found at the scene has provoked scepticism, with many unwilling to be convinced. Citizens are openly questioning how, after so many days, when the area was reduced to ashes and doused with thousands of litres of water, these cigarette butts could have survived intact.
Two Versions, Two Narratives
In a move that critics say was designed to shape public perception, the government released the findings in two separate documents. The first was the complete 46-page report in English, the original text of the ATF investigators. Alongside it, however, officials also issued a so-called “summary” in Greek, amounting to only ten pages. Inevitably, much of the discussion centred on what was included in this shorter version, rather than the full text.
The key question is who prepared this Greek summary, and by what criteria they chose which elements to include and which to omit. Reading the English original reveals that the summary left out entire sections. For instance, paragraph 70 of the English text refers explicitly to the presence of a rubbish dump near ground zero, a detail entirely absent from the Greek version. Similarly, references to investigators using magnifying glasses, as well as the discovery of additional cigarette butts a few metres from the ignition site that were unburnt, were also excluded.
In fact, paragraph 80 of the original report is carefully worded, noting that while cigarette butts were found near the ignition point, many showed no heat damage. The investigators wrote that it was “likely either that they were discarded after the fire or that they had been there beforehand but were not affected.” They added that the theory of a lit cigarette being accidentally discarded “cannot be excluded.”
Perhaps most tellingly, the final conclusion of the ATF report, recorded in paragraph 103 and categorising the fire as “accidental,” is missing entirely from the Greek summary.
A Scene Left Open
The discovery of the cigarette butts raises a central question: how could they have remained in place, undisturbed, for 15 days after the blaze? The fire broke out on 23 July 2025, while the ATF team only arrived in Mallia on 7 August. In the meantime, the supposed “ground zero” was not sealed off. Police investigators from Limassol CID had conducted their own searches there, followed by the Fire Service, and dozens of journalists had visited the site to document it. Members of the public had also passed through, eager to see the place where the deadly wildfire began.
No Accountability Assigned
Given the government’s promises, many had expected the report to include findings on responsibility. Instead, the ATF experts confirmed what had already been clear: that their mandate was limited. The team did not have the authority, the expertise, or the instructions to assign blame.
What emerged was essentially a report of facts, based largely on testimonies from the various Cypriot authorities involved, supplemented by a handful of interviews conducted by the Americans themselves.