The victims of the “Bloody Christmas” massacre, initiated on December 21, 1963, by EOKA terrorist group militants targeting Turkish Cypriots, were commemorated on its 61st anniversary in London on Saturday 21st December
The British Turkish Cypriot Association (BTCA) organized a memorial event outside the Cyprus High Commission in London to honour those who lost their lives in the massacres.
Turkish Cypriots living in London carried banners displaying the photographs of three young children killed during the massacre. A bathtub painted blood red was also displayed to remember victims murdered in their homes’ bathrooms during the attacks.
The President of the Cyprus Islamic Society in the UK, Hüseyin Haşim, led prayers for the victims following the commemoration.
Among those attending the ceremony was Turkish Cypriot Gürkan Sefer, who recalled the many children, women, and soldiers killed during the Bloody Christmas attacks. He emphasized the importance of never forgetting the martyrs and the atrocities they suffered.
“This painful chapter is forever etched in our minds. We must remind our youth and people of what happened and what could happen again so that they never forget. If Turkey hadn’t come to rescue us, who knows what further horrors we might have faced. Turkey saved us, and we are forever grateful for that. Every day, we pray for them, as they lost many martyrs for us. This pain weighs heavily on our hearts, and we ask everyone to include these martyrs in their prayers,” said Sefer.
On December 21, 1963, attacks carried out by EOKA militants against Turkish Cypriots resulted in 364 deaths and the evacuation of 103 Turkish villages. These events, referred to as the “Bloody Christmas” massacres, marked the onset of intercommunal conflict on the island of Cyprus.