Greece Revises School History Book after Church Protests

Greece has revised a school history book that enraged the Greek Orthodox Church, Cyprus and historians with what they said were toned down versions of Greek suffering at the hands of Ottomans and Turks.

The book for 11-year-olds, which was introduced to schools last year, was given a thorough revision after suggestions from senior academic bodies, Culture Minister Marietta Giannakou told reporters on Thursday.

"The writers accepted there were historical faux-pas, mistakes and inaccuracies," said Giannakou, who five months ago resisted calls for its withdrawal.

She did not reveal which parts of the book had been revised but said the new version would be used in schools from September.

"This book now does not have the mistakes of the previous version. We hope that the reception of the book by the education community will be positive," she said.

Archrivals Turkey and Greece, for about 500 years occupied by the Ottomans, are still at odds over several territorial issues that have repeatedly brought the two neighbours to the brink of war.

The Church of Greece, a powerful institution in the mainly Orthodox Christian country, was among the most vocal critics of the book, demanding its withdrawal.

It had objected to a reference to a 1922 attack on the city of Smyrna -- modern-day Izmir -- by Turkish forces to drive out the occupying Greek army that forced tens of thousands of Greeks to flee.

The book described an event that left thousands dead, a large part of the city burnt and many more Greeks ending up refugees as "a congestion at the Izmir port".

The church also said the book failed to highlight its role during the 1821 Greek revolution against the Ottoman empire.

Cyprus' Education ministry had also rejected the book, mainly because it called the island's division and subsequent failed peace talks as the "Cyprus issue" rather than the commonly used "Cyprus problem."

Cyprus has been split since 1974, when Turkey invaded in response to a Greek-inspired coup in Nicosia.

"We did our duty when we handed in our objections in writing," Church of Greece spokesman Father Timotheos said.

"Now we will have to see what changes have been made. We have to get our hands on this book first before we can comment any further."