Bloody Christmas

Bloody Christmas is a chain of events that began on 21 December 1963, initiated by Greek Cypriots against Turkish Cypriots on the island of Cyprus and is remembered in history as a period of massacre. These events led to the collapse of the Republic of Cyprus, established in 1960 under the guarantee of Türkiye, Greece and the United Kingdom, and resulted in systematic attacks against the Turkish community on the island. During this period, the Akritas Plan, implemented by Greek Cypriots in line with their goal of Enosis (union with Greece), emerged as a strategy aimed at eliminating the Turkish community.

Historical Background

Cyprus has held geopolitical significance throughout history due to its strategic location. Its proximity to the coasts of Anatolia and Syria, its influence over the entrance and exit of the Aegean Sea, and its position relative to the Suez Canal led to its transfer from the Ottoman Empire to Britain in 1878. During this period, Greek Cypriots adopted the goal of Enosis within the framework of the Megali Idea and launched various initiatives toward this end in 1912, 1931 and the 1950s.

In 1931, Greek Cypriots launched a revolt against British rule. In 1947, Greece submitted a formal application to the United Nations (UN) for the union of Cyprus with Greece, and in 1950, a plebiscite was held to advance the Enosis demand on the international stage. However, this plebiscite was conducted without the participation of the Turkish community and lacked legal validity.

In 1955, the EOKA (Ethniki Organosis Kypriakon Agoniston), established under the leadership of Greek Colonel George Grivas, launched an armed struggle for Enosis and plunged the island into a state of chaos that lasted until 1974.

Although the British administration was aware of EOKA’s activities, it struggled to infiltrate the disciplined structure of the Turkish Resistance Organisation (TMT). In response to EOKA’s attacks, Turkish Cypriots formed defence organisations such as Karaçete, Volkan, 9 Eylül, and ultimately the TMT, established in 1958. These organisations operated within the framework of self-defence and made efforts to avoid harming Greek Cypriot civilians.

The Republic of Cyprus, established on 16 August 1960 through the Zurich and London Agreements, aimed to include both Turkish and Greek Cypriot communities in joint governance. However, the Greek Cypriot leadership, particularly President Makarios, viewed the republic as a stepping stone toward achieving Enosis.

Between 1960 and 1963, tensions escalated over constitutional disputes, tax issues, and the failure to provide Turkish Cypriots with the constitutionally guaranteed 30 percent representation in public services. Makarios’s proposed “Thirteen Points” constitutional amendments on 30 November 1963 sought to reduce the Turkish community to a minority status and were rejected by Turkish Cypriot leadership on 6 December 1963. This proposal became the primary justification for implementing the Akritas Plan.

The Akritas Plan

The Akritas Plan is a secret strategy document prepared by the Greek Cypriot leadership with the aim of eliminating the Turkish community on the island. Named after a 9th-century Byzantine epic, the plan first surfaced in the Athens-based newspaper Agonitis / The Fighter after the 1959 Zurich and London Agreements and was published in full in 1966 by the pro-Grivas newspaper Patris.

The Akritas Plan was based on two main strategies: an external front and an internal front. On the external front, the goal was to convince world public opinion that the Zurich and London Agreements were unjust, that the Turks were a minority on the island, and that Greek Cypriots had the right to self-determination.

On the internal front, the plan called for the use of violence to subdue the Turkish community, force them into migration, and alter the constitution that obstructed Enosis. The plan aimed to eliminate Turkish leaders, gather intelligence on the TMT, undermine Turkish-Greek Cypriot goodwill under the guise of defending it, and weaken the bonds between Türkiye and Turkish Cypriots. EOKA’s weapons were supplemented by arms remaining from previous operations, those smuggled in by Grivas, and those supplied by countries such as Greece and Egypt.

Beginning of the Bloody Christmas Events

Bloody Christmas began in the early hours of Friday, 21 December 1963, at approximately 02:00 in the Tahtakale neighbourhood of Nicosia. Greek Cypriot security forces and EOKA militants stopped two vehicles returning from Kyrenia to Nicosia and attempted to conduct a search under the pretext of identity checks. The request by the female passengers for female officers to carry out the search was denied. When resistance was encountered, the Greek Cypriots opened fire, killing Zeki Halil and Cemaliye Emirali. This incident ignited the Bloody Christmas events.

In the aftermath, on 22 December, Turkish Cypriots organised a protest march along the Nicosia-Kyrenia road, throwing stones at Greek Cypriot vehicles and setting some on fire. On the same day, Greek Cypriot police opened fire on the Nicosia Turkish Male High School and the Atatürk statue, and attacked the Turkish Embassy. On 23 December, clashes intensified; five Turkish gendarmes in the village of Ayeszomo were shot at, with one sustaining serious injuries.

Greek Cypriots imposed blockades on Turkish villages, creating food shortages, and refused to provide blood transfusions to wounded Turkish Cypriots in hospitals. On 24 December, Greek Cypriot police set up ambushes targeting Turkish Cypriots in the Aspava Bar area of Nicosia, while attacks continued in Kukli with the support of a 1,000-strong Greek military contingent. Turkish resistance continued with limited weapons left over from World War I: six rifles, five Sten submachine guns, and two Bren light machine guns.

The Kumsal Massacre

The most tragic event of Bloody Christmas occurred on 24 December 1963 in the Kumsal neighbourhood of Nicosia. Greek Cypriots considered Kumsal a “dead zone” and left it undefended. After being informed by Avrakami, an Armenian-origin Greek Cypriot, that there was no Turkish resistance in the area, they launched an attack. Over 150 Greek Cypriots under the command of Greek officer Terezepulos entered Kumsal, supported by gunfire from the Severis Un Factory.

In the attack on the home of Major Nihat İlhan, serving as a doctor in the Cyprus Turkish Forces Regiment at 2 Irfan Bey Street, his wife Mürüvet (aged 37) and their children Murat (aged 6), Kutsi (aged 5), and Hakan (10 months old) were killed while hiding in the bathtub. At the time of the attack, Major İlhan was en route to a school converted into a hospital in Gönyeli to transport wounded civilians by bus.

The house where the massacre occurred was later converted by its owner Hasan Yusuf Kudum into “Museum of Barbarism”. A Daily Mail correspondent reported that the bathroom of the house was “drenched in blood like a slaughterhouse,” and that a woman and three children were found dead, embracing each other. In the same area, TMT fighter Yılmaz Bora was seriously wounded and taken to Dr. Necdet Ünel’s Adiloğlu Clinic. Turkish sources emphasise that the massacre was systematically planned under the Akritas Plan to subdue and force the Turkish community into migration.

In the Greek Cypriot press (İ Mahi), these events were presented as a response to the “illegal resistance” of Turkish Cypriots. However, the Turkish side stated that the attacks were organised under state control by EOKA-B, Grivas’s “I Organosi” organisation, and other paramilitary groups.

The Role of the Turkish Resistance Organisation (TMT)

The TMT was a clandestine defence organisation established on 1 August 1958 to protect Turkish Cypriots. Prior to Bloody Christmas, the TMT closely monitored Greek Cypriot harassment of Turks and EOKA’s activities.

On 4 December 1963, an attack on the statue of Markos Drakos, an EOKA “hero,” at Baf Gate was used by Greek Cypriots as a pretext to launch attacks against Turks and to justify the implementation of the Akritas Plan. In response to the attacks beginning on 21 December, the TMT emerged from underground and mobilised to defend Turkish areas, retrieving buried weapons in Alevkaya, Bozdağ and other locations. However, most of these weapons were old and rusted, and ammunition was limited.

As a disciplined and loyal organisation, the TMT sought to prevent harm to Greek Cypriot civilians. For example, on 9 December 1963, some Turkish Cypriots protested a construction job given to a Greek Cypriot in the Kumsal area; the TMT intervened and halted the action.

The TMT’s resistance, particularly in Nicosia, successfully thwarted Greek Cypriot plans to seize the city. On 25 December, the sight of Turkish jets flying over Nicosia forced Makarios to accept a ceasefire. However, clashes continued until 1974.

Relief Activities of the Turkish Red Crescent

After Bloody Christmas, Turkish Cypriots were forced to abandon their villages and live in tent cities and schools. The Turkish Red Crescent Society began delivering aid to the island from 28 December 1963. The wounded were evacuated to Ankara, and documents and photographs were smuggled into Türkiye hidden within the bandages of the injured, following the suggestion of Dr. Necdet Ünel.

Greek Cypriots refused to allow Turkish aircraft to land at Nicosia Airport, but permitted a Red Cross-monitored plane to evacuate the wounded from the island. During this period, the wounded were sent to Ankara, and some who completed their treatment returned to Cyprus on 29 January 1964.

International Dimension and Consequences

Bloody Christmas effectively collapsed the Republic of Cyprus and confined the Turkish community to a mere 3 percent of the island’s territory. At a meeting on 25 December 1963, Makarios and Dr. Fazıl Küçük discussed a ceasefire, but the Greek Cypriot press claimed that the Turks were “rebels” continuing violence. Greek Cypriots imposed blockades on Turkish villages to force migration; 103 villages were emptied and 25,000 to 30,000 people were displaced.

Türkiye sought to resolve the issue through diplomatic channels, but the United Nations and other international actors proved ineffective. Britain and Greece, as guarantor powers, made no effort to stop the massacres, while the Turkish side viewed Türkiye as the only reliable actor. Bloody Christmas and subsequent attacks paved the way for Türkiye’s Cyprus Peace Operation in 1974 and laid the foundation for the establishment of Republic of Northern Cyprus (RNC).