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- Ελληνικά
"Carnations all purple, bodies burnt
breaths all the death of the betrayed earth,
fragments, flesh shapeless in pain kneaded
the myrology of Tellyria, yeast of rage"
Borrowing the lines of the poem "Epigram to Tilyria" by Anthos Lykaugis and with feelings of immense gratitude and deepest respect we come here today, to the Holy Church of Saints Raphael, Nicholas and Peace in Pachyammos, to celebrate the national memorial of the fallen in the battles of Tillyria, which took place in the bleak August of 1964.
Today we pay tribute to those spirited compatriots who bravely determined crucial moments in the history of Cyprus, and with their blood consecrated our martyred land, here in the heartland of Hellenism.
Almost six decades later, the pulsating voices of the heroically fallen of that period still echo in the sky, in the sea and in the bloodstained, all-virgin soil of Tillyria.
Those voices, which return every year to measure the still unhealed wounds of our long-suffering land, are transformed into cries of historical consciousness, self-consciousness, responsibility and remembrance of duty.
They are the voices of ordinary people, of toil and livelihood, who from one moment to the next became the guardians of new Thermopylae.
They are the voices of the heroically fallen commandos of the 31st Commando Squadron,
The fighters of the 206 and 216 Infantry Battalions, the brave men of the 83rd and 85th Companies of the 8th Tactical Group.
Together with the men of the National Guard Company of Kato Pyrgos and Pachyammos, as well as the members of all seven who were sacrificed in the heroic resistance of the "Phaethon" squadron of the National Guard Navy, which was mercilessly bombed by Turkish bombers on the sweet-faced shore of Karavostasiou.
All of them stood firm against the invaders and sternly echoed Constantine Palaiologos' response to the fornicator Mohammed.
" [...] all of you, let us die of our own free will, and let us not fear for our lives [...]"
Because it was their self-willed decision to place their duty to their country above all else, as an end in itself and the highest priority. Because it was a duty and obligation for them to protect the sacred land that they revived and with great love, effort and sweat they reformed.
This is exactly what every hero has in common. The ability to transcend the mere performance of duty. This further step towards the fulfillment of the mission.
Today we honor all those spirited ones who, defying danger, fought with vigor and self-denial and offered their lives as a libation on the altar of freedom and justice of our homeland.
Today we honor all those spirited ones who, defying danger, fought with vigor and self-denial and offered their lives as a libation on the altar of freedom and justice of our homeland.
The events of Tilliria in August 1964 were in essence the first pre-planned Turkish military invasion of Cyprus, with the ultimate aim of realizing Ankara's long-standing plan to abolish the newly established Republic of Cyprus and the de facto partition of the island.
Turkey, in order to achieve this objective and despite the fact that it had jointly co-signed, some years earlier, the Treaty Establishing the Republic of Cyprus - a signature which it never respected and honoured - proceeded gradually, at the beginning of 1964, to create an enclave based on the villages of Kokkina and Mansoura.
The enclave would have been a bridgehead for Turkey in Cyprus, allowing for a direct and uninterrupted sea connection with the island. In the first half of 1964, after a significant number of military forces and large quantities of arms and ammunition had been transferred to the area, Turkey proceeded to advance positions in the surrounding area, culminating in the capture of the strategically important "Lorovounos" hill on 9 July.
In the first half of 1964, after a significant number of military forces and large quantities of arms and ammunition had been transferred to the area, Turkey proceeded to advance positions in the surrounding area, culminating in the capture of the strategically important "Lorovounos" hill on 9 July.
Moreover, from the other military actions carried out, it became apparent that Ankara was preparing to carry out, initially, a military invasion, followed by the expansion of the enclave and its consolidation with that of Lefka and then with that of Nicosia-Kioneli.
The ultimate objective was the control of a large geographical area, which would contribute to the achievement of the effort for the gradual destabilization and abolition of the Cypriot state and the eventual partition of the island.
To deter the expansion of the Kokkinia enclave, the Cypriot State decided to intervene immediately to prevent the fait accompli.
In order to deter the expansion of the Kokkinia enclave, the Cypriot State decided to intervene immediately to prevent the fait accompli.
On 7 August, the security forces of the State, spearheaded by the National Guard, carried out a military operation, recapturing the high ground in the area and forcing the Turks to retreat into the Kokkin enclave. The National Guardsmen, who had just enlisted a few days ago, showed unparalleled heroism, determination and self-denial. Having achieved their initial objective of recapturing the heights, they were ordered to prepare an attack with the aim of completely eliminating the bridgehead.
The unlikely development of events for Ankara and the military success of the then newly formed - without a complete structure and organization and with insufficient means - National Guard and other forces, led it to intervene with the use of its air force.
Over the next two days, Turkish aircraft launched merciless bombardments, firing hundreds of rockets and napalm bombs against the National Guard positions, but also against civilians in residential areas, from Xeros to Pyrgos.
The culmination of the Turkish atrocity was the bombing and total destruction of the hospital deployed in Pachyammos, which indiscriminately spread death and destruction and caused serious injuries to staff and patients.
"From the 4th to the 7th evening of today" the Press and Information Office announced on 8 August, "about 30 Turkish jet fighter jets attacked Cyprus and fired rockets and mortars at burnt areas and civilians [...] The exact number of casualties has not yet been ascertained, but so far 24 dead and 200 wounded from the bombing, including many women and children, even infants, have been counted'.
The devastation was unprecedented for Cypriot society. In addition to the fact that for the first time a civilian population experienced the horrific ordeal of repeated aerial bombardments, they revealed the true intentions of Turkey, which was otherwise a guarantor of the State of the Republic of Cyprus.
It became a sacred place, a place of national pilgrimage, a place of drawing strength to defend our rights in the land of our ancestors and an altar of heroes.
Heroes who believed in the power of the soul and human dignity.
The napalm bombs dropped by the Turkish Air Force to kill Greek Cypriot civilians in the area, the ones that burned the land and bodies of our heroes, continue to burn our souls to this day.
The price was heavy for the whole of Cyprus, which from one day to the next dressed in black for its dead heroic children.
Weeping and wailing for mothers and fathers, wives and children, relatives and friends, who mournfully greeted the burnt bodies of their unfortunate braves.
"But we know well now
what we shoulder with these dead,
but we know well now
what we sign with these dead,
what they mean,
what they will write on the ground,
what they will write under the ground,
what they will deposit for our footsteps,
what they will deposit for our shovels
the charcoal of burnt hands."
The prophetic verses of Kostas Montis, from his poem "The Mansoura Area (Despair)", which was published in the newspaper "Agon" a few days after the tragedy that struck Tillyria, described the horror, the pain and the intense anxiety about what was to follow in the future.
Fifty-nine years after the bombing of Tillyria and almost half a century after the Turkish invasion of 1974, our country is still burdened by occupation, barbed wire and dividing lines, and we are still burdened by our responsibility towards our history, towards our country and our people, towards past and future generations.
We have the responsibility and duty to fight with all our strength to make our country free and reunited, a place of security, justice and progress for our people.
We declare that we will not withdraw from the struggle until the final vindication.
We are making and will continue to make every possible effort to reverse the current situation and remove the prolonged deadlock that has emerged on the Cyprus problem.
This is the focus of all the efforts of the President of the Republic Mr. Nicos Christodoulides. The return to the table of talks and negotiations.
Perpetuating the occupation and compromising with partition is not an option. We seek, at last, the resumption of the process of an honest and sincere dialogue, under the auspices of the UN, and with the more active involvement of the EU, in order to reach a mutually acceptable, viable and workable solution to the Cyprus problem
Only then will the conditions be created for Hellenism to take root again in our currently occupied land. When we achieve the lifting of the occupation and the reunification of our homeland in conditions of peace, security and freedom for our people.
We owe this future to our history. A future of freedom, peace and unity.
This will be the best memorial for the heroes we commemorate today, whose example will inspire us forever.
Forging, therefore, our self-consciousness, and reviving the principles and ideals that inspired our heroic ancestors, we renew with modesty and reverence the promise to continue the struggle we are waging for the salvation of our homeland.
Eternal and honored be the memory of all those who gave their lives in the national struggles for the freedom of our homeland.
Thank you.
(NΓ)
Contents of this article including associated images are belongs to PIO
Views & opinions expressed are those of the author and/or PIO
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