Tassos Isaac

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Anastasios (Tassos) Isaak (Greek Αναστάσιος (Τάσος) Ισαάκ, * 1972 ; † August 11, 1996 near Famagusta ) was a Greek Cypriot who was killed at a demonstration on August 11, 1996 in front of Famagusta by members of the fascist Turkish " gray wolves " was beaten to death in the UN buffer zone. He is usually remembered in Cyprus with his cousin Solomos Solomou, who was also murdered shortly thereafter .

Cause of death

In August 1996, on the occasion of the 22nd year of the partition of Cyprus , more than 200 motorcyclists from several European countries organized a rally from Berlin (until 1989 the last divided city in Europe apart from Nicosia) to Cyprus. They left the German capital Berlin on August 2, 1996 with their motorcycles and planned to arrive on August 11, 1996 at their destination, Deryneia, south of Famagusta, where they wanted to meet Cypriot bikers. At the same time, around 2,500 members of the right-wing Turkish organization Gray Wolves planned to travel to Turkish-occupied Northern Cyprus to attack the motorcyclists and demonstrators in the UN buffer zone.

Due to the strong political pressure (also from the UN Secretary General Boutros Boutros-Ghali ) on the Cypriot Motorcycle Federation, the protest was officially canceled on August 11, 1996. This decision was received with great disapproval by a large section of motorcyclists and other demonstrators. Therefore, they decided to conduct their own protest. Among them was Tassos Isaak, who, along with other demonstrators, entered the UN buffer zone near Deryneia, south of the Turkish-occupied city of Famagusta.

A United Nations report said the protesters invaded the UN buffer zone and crossed the Turkish armed forces' truce line , known as the Green Line . The UN report continues: "Although the situation was very tense, the UNFICYP soldiers managed to bring it under control, not least because the Turkish Cyprus Corps and the Turkish Cypriot police were very disciplined and despite considerable verbal provocations from the demonstrators acted cautiously. "

During the confrontation in the UN buffer zone between the bikers and demonstrators on the one hand and the radical right-wing Turkish "Gray Wolves" on the other, Isaac got caught in a barbed wire obstacle without his fellow demonstrators noticing that he could no longer escape. A large group of members of the "gray wolves", Cypriot Turks and Turkish settlers ran up to him with sticks and stones and beat him.

The UN soldiers in the buffer zone refrained from any help, both during and after the attack. When Greek Cypriot demonstrators came to the scene to rescue Isaac, he had already succumbed to his serious injuries.

Funeral, reactions and consequences

Tassos Isaak's funeral took place on August 14, 1996 and was attended by thousands of people. Renewed protests after the funeral at Famagusta led to the murder of Isaac's cousin, Solomos Solomou, by soldiers of the Turkish occupation army.

When Isaac was killed, he left behind his pregnant wife. The child was christened Anastasia in memory of the slain father, and the then Greek Foreign Minister Theodoros Pangalos became the godfather .

On November 22, 1996, the Cypriot police issued international arrest warrants for the murder of Tassos Isaak against Hasim Yilmaz (Turkish settler and former member of the Turkish secret service), Neyfel Mustafa Ergun (Turkish settler, Cypriot Turkish police officer), Fikret Koreli Polat (Cypriot Turk from Famagusta), Mehmet Mustafa Arslan (Turkish settler, leader of the gray wolves in occupied Northern Cyprus) and Erhan Arikli (Turkish settler from the former Soviet Union).