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Maratha, Santalaris and Aloda massacre
Part of atrocities against Turkish Cypriots during the Turkish invasion of Cyprus
Dead bodies of Turkish Cypriot civilians at Sandallar (Santalaris).
Locations of massacres against Turkish Cypriots in 1974
Location	Maratha, Santalaris, Aloda in Cyprus
Date	August 14, 1974; 50 years ago (1974-08-14)
Target	Turkish Cypriot civilians
Weapons	Machine guns, sharp tools
Deaths	126
Perpetrator	EOKA B
Motive	Anti-Turkish sentiment, Hellenization

Maratha, Santalaris and Aloda massacre (Turkish: Muratağa, Sandallar ve Atlılar katliamı) refers to a massacre of Turkish Cypriots by EOKA B; a Greek Cypriot paramilitary group that took place on 14 August 1974 in the villages of Maratha, Santalaris and Aloda. In the massacre, a total of 126 unarmed Turks were killed, with the youngest being 16 days old and the oldest 95 years old.

Background

According to the 1960 census, the inhabitants of the three villages were entirely Turkish Cypriots. The total population of Maratha and Santalaris was 207. By 1973, the total population of the villages had risen to 270, with 124 in Maratha, 100 in Santalaris and 46 in Aloda. However, in July 1974, following the first Turkish invasion of Cyprus, all men of fighting age were taken away as prisoners of war to internment camps in Famagusta and from there transferred to Limassol. The Turkish Invasion of Cyprus started in response to a Greek junta-sponsored Cypriot coup d'état five days earlier, it led to the Turkish capture and occupation of the northern part of the island. On 2 July 1974, Makarios wrote an open letter to President Gizikis complaining bluntly that 'cadres of the Greek military regime support and direct the activities of the 'EOKA-B' terrorist organisation'

Massacre

On 20 July 1974, the men of the villages were arrested by EOKA-B and sent to Limassol. Following this, according to testimonials cited by Sevgül Uludağ, EOKA-B men from the neighboring village of Peristeronopigi came, got drunk in the camp they established in the village coffeehouse, fired shots in the air, and subsequently raped many women and young girls; this continued until 14 August 1974. Upon the launch of the second invasion of the Turkish Army, they decided not to leave behind any witnesses and killed the entire population of the villages present at the time.

In Maratha and Santalaris, 84-89 were killed. The Turkish imam of Maratha stated that there were 90 people in the village prior to the massacre, and only six people were left. Elderly people and children were also killed during the massacre. Only three people were able to escape from the massacre in Aloda. The inhabitants of the three villages were buried in mass graves with a bulldozer. The villagers of Maratha and Santalaris were buried in the same grave.

Associated Press described the corpses as "so battered and decomposed that they crumbled to pieces when soldiers lifted them from the garbage with shovels". Milliyet reported that parts of the bodies had been chopped off and sharp tools, as well as machine guns had been used in the massacre.

According to Greek Cypriot writer and researcher Tony Angastiniotis, at least one of the attackers used a mainland Greek accent, which suggested that he was a Greek officer.

Reactions

The massacre was reported by international media, including The Guardian and The Times.

Rauf Denktaş put off a meeting with Greek Cypriots after the mass grave was uncovered.

See also

• List of massacres in Cyprus
• List of massacres of Turkish people
• Bloody Christmas (1963)

References

1. ^ Oberling, Pierre. The road to Bellapais: the Turkish Cypriot exodus to northern Cyprus (1982), Social Science Monographs, p. 185
2. L'Événement du jeudi, Issues 543-547 (1995), S.A. L'Evénement du jeudi, p. 45 (in French)
3. Documents officiels, United Nations: "Only three of the inhabitants of Atlilar (Aloa) survived this massacre. For the defenceless inhabitants of the villages of Murataga (Maratha) and Sandallar (Sandallaris)..."
4. ^ Paul Sant Cassia, Bodies of Evidence: Burial, Memory, and the Recovery of Missing Persons in Cyprus, Berghahn Books, 2007, ISBN 978-1-84545-228-5, p. 237.
5. Gilles de Rapper, Pierre Sintès. Nommer et classer dans les Balkans (2008), French School of Athens, p.263: "le massacre des villages turcs de Tochni (entre Larnaka et Limassol), Maratha, Santalaris et Aloda"
6. "Muratağa and Sandallar problem is being taken to the European Court of Human Rights" (in Turkish). BRT - Kıbrıs Postası. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 18 January 2011.
7. "Muratağa ve Sandallar konusu AİHM'e götürülyor - Kıbrıs Postası". web.archive.org. 2016-03-03. Retrieved 2024-12-29.
8. Barışın Teminatı: Kıbrıs Barış Harekâtı (in Turkish). Retrieved 2024-12-29 – via ytb.gov.tr.
9. Map of Cyprus Archived 2007-10-28 at the Wayback Machine
10. ΚΥΠΡΟΣ - CYPRUS (612 villages, 9251.47 km)
11. "Famagusta". PRIO Cyprus Center. Retrieved 3 April 2015.
12. "Aloa". PRIO Cyprus Center. Retrieved 3 April 2015.
13. Uludağ, Sevgül (13 July 2014). "From Maratha to Voni: Rapes as a weapon of war…". Politis. Retrieved 23 April 2015.
14. Uludağ, Sevgül. "The story of Assia (Pasakoy) and Afanya (Gazikoy)". Hamamböcüleri Journal. Retrieved 23 April 2015.
15. ^ "The Victoria Advocate - Google News Archive Search".
16. "CYPRUS: Ankara's Slow Nibble". Time. 16 September 1974. Archived from the original on December 22, 2008. Retrieved 19 January 2011.
17. "İkinci Katliam", Milliyet, 2 September 1974, p. 10.
18. Asmussen, Jan. Cyprus at war: diplomacy and conflict during the 1974 crisis (2008), I.B. Tauris, p. 349: "Angastiniotis relates that at least one of the attackers had spoken with a mainland Greek accent suggesting that he had been a junior mainland officer."
19. Clement Henry Dodd, The political, social and economic development of Northern Cyprus (1993), Eothen Press, p. 101
20. "Turkish Cypriote Puts Off Meeting With Ethnic Greeks; American Heads Vatican Study". The New York Times. 3 September 1974.

External links

• Mass grave is found in Aloa, Cyprus Footage of Associated Press from the discovery of a mass grave in Aloa

35°12′40″N 33°48′00″E / 35.21111°N 33.80000°E / 35.21111; 33.80000

• Massacres of ethnic groups
• Greek war crimes
• Mass graves
• Massacres in Cyprus
• 1974 in Cyprus
• Cyprus dispute
• EOKA B
• Massacres in 1974
• August 1974 events in Europe
• Persecution of Turkish Cypriots
• Deaths by firearm in Cyprus
• 1970s murders in Cyprus