Big K

Parihaka,

on the first photo there is no Ottoman-like soldiers...these are maybe Russians or Armenians fighting alongside with Russians.

by the way sorry i can not read Ottoman. so i can not translate it for you...

on the other hand if you want photos here you have...you may find interesting...


Second Company of the Armenian Voluntary Hinchak Regiment "Yerissart Hayastan" (Young Armenia) 20th July 1915.

Men and the Commanders of the first peloton of the 8th Company of the Armenian Hinchak Regiment and the staff of the Red Cross Society.

A group of the Armenian Tashnak bands during the Van rebellion

Arms confiscated from the Armenians at Trebizond.

Some bombs seized at Ada-bazar together with tools to manufacture them. A few influential leaders of the Committee and some of its members whose duty is to make bombs and distribute them.

Arms taken from the Armenians of Amasya.

A group of Muslim women and children from Hizir İllias village, Diyarbakir, helpless and defenseless on account of the absence of their husbands and male relatives serving in the Army, were, on July 23, 1915, slaughtered at Mersin Dere, by means of daggers and shot by rifles in a most pitiless and horibble way by an Armenian Band under the the notorious and well known bandit Hono.

A group of Muslims who, on August 29 1914, after being arrested by the Armenian bands while visiting the tomb of a Saint on the Siverek-Urfa high-road, near Karadja-Dag, were used as living targets by the latter and assinated in a most barbarous way.

Genderma officer Mustafa whose throat was cut by the Armenian bandits.

Photo, taken on the spot, of some of Msulim victims assassinated with hachets by Armenians in the village of Koollar. 1- Malik, the Bosniac 2- Ali, son of Abdulmejid 3- Seyid son of Ali (aged 14 years) 4- Abdulgani son of Omer 5- Mecid son of Abdulgani 6- Huseyin son of Abdullah 7- Yusuf son of Bekir 8- Ismail son of Osman

A Turkish women named Pakize who was raped and then killed by the Armenians in Erzincan.

Two men whose eyes were scooped out by the Armenians in Odabasi district, Erzincan.

Turkish children massacred by the Armenians in Erzincan.

54 yeared old Mahmut Agha was among the victims of the Armenians. He was thrown in a well and killed.

Turks killed by the Armenians.

A Turkish man killed violently by the Armenians in Sarikamish.

Turkish children and women killed by the Armenians. Some of the women were killed by taking the babies out from their wombs. Subatan, April 25, 1918.

by the way you can find more at this link...

Ermeni Sorunu, Armenian Question, Der Armenier Konflikt, Question Armenienne - FORSNET

__________________
When i say, there will be no effect but i am not willing to remain silent.
-Fuzuli

Big K

yes and some of them did this...but most likely they did it to Turks....not the Armenians...

our olders are always telling us stories about their fear from Bands of Armenians...

look Glyn, and others please imagine there was no "man" in these Turkish villages...at 1915 Turks were fighting almost 100 years...but Armenians didnt have the obligation of military service...do you realize??...

you must imagine at least once in a time that Turks are right in this case...

Parihaka

So, one of the photos may not show Turkish troops, and the others?

As far as I can see: Even according to Turkey, the fear of Armenian nationalism drove the Ottoman Empire to kill 600,000 ethnic Armenians by forced marches south to Syria and Mesopotamia and executions.
Numerous foreign nationals documented this in both letters to their own governments and in the pictures I've been showing, and yet you deny that this mass killing was genocide?

Oh, and the above letter is the official orders for the forced marches to be conducted, seeing as how you were claiming that no documentation existed....
To go along with your claim that no photos existed....
and your claim that the photos didn't show Ottoman troops....

__________________
In the realm of spirit, seek clarity; in the material world, seek utility.
Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz

zraver

Big K, how do we know those are turks? They could just as easily be Armenian victims killed by turks who the Turkish goverment claimed turks killed by Armenians for propaganda purposes. Pictures are not very relaible, yes they shjow dead people, but which sides dead? Much more convincing is the testimony of nuetrals and NGO's and life insurance policy premiums. These combine to give a very convincing argument for the genocide.

Big K

Did anybody at least tried to look and read something from this link??

Introduction to Armenian Issue - FORSNET

please read everything at this link...

cant you even 1 second thinking that Turks can be right??

whatever i post or show it seems this is a ideefix in your minds? wheres your free mind? cant you at least try to look from the point of wiew of Turks?

in all threads almost all members of WAB think that Turks are wrong what an idéefixé...and they can never be right and telling the truth???

evil Turks and Muslims killed innocent Armenians...bad bad Turks... in some sources Mustafa Kemal himself showed as responsible of the Armenian deaths

any of members are not reading anything that i say about this...or they can not believe that the real victims were unmanned Turkish villages...

by the way yes the photos can be from everyside, and the neutrality of these sources are questionable...

Archer

This negationism is what characterises all acts of Islamic marauders, whether Turks or this or that..
It didnt happen. It was justified. It is overblown. Everyone else is lying.

Sigh..

__________________
Karmani Vyapurutham Dhanuhu

My bow is stretched for its task

Archer

From the link above:

Sigh..hundreds of thousands butchered...and this is the justification. Complaining about the fact that the news got out, and "why" it was spread.

Big K

Marauder?? who is marauder? you or me? did i sad anything disrespective? no...what did you sad? marauder...hımm...well we are seeing who is the real marauder...

wheres the justification? in these lines i only read a big conspiracy...

ideefixes are everywhere...

Kansas Bear

"In June and July 1915 the Turks deported over 1.5 million Armenians, more than half of whom died. Unfortunately for the Armenians their suffering was not at an end. One estimate places the number who were killed or died in camps in Syria or Mesopotamia between 1915 and 1922 at more than 1.4 million people." -- "The Great War: 1914-18", by Spencer Tucker, p179

"The Turkish massacres of Armenians in 1894, 1895, 1896, and 1909 were still fresh in their minds." -- "A Peace to End All Peace", by David Fromkin, p211.

"Reports poured in from German officials in the field with gruesome details of atrocities; von Wangenheim, the German ambassador found it increasingly difficult to overlook what was going on. In July, von Wangenheim reported to the German Chancellor that there no longer was any doubt that the Porte was trying to "exterminate the Armenian race in the Turkish empire." --"A Peace to End All Peace", by David Fromkin, p213.

"1915, April-May, Armenian Revolt. Turkish massacres of Armenians, on suspicion they were aiding Russians, precipitated an Armenian revolt. The rebels seized the fortress of Van, holding it until the arrival of the Russians." --"Encyclopedia of Military History", by T.N. Dupuy, p1047



My sincerest thanks for the sources!!!

Kansas Bear

"Whether or not there was a premeditated genocidal master plan is immaterial. It must have occurred to the Ottoman leadership that the destruction of such a pervasive nationalist movement would inevitably entail suffering on an enormous scale, and that the environment amid a general war was tantamount to a collective death sentence. In the end, whatever their intial intention, the Ottoman actions constituted nothing short of genocide." -- "Islamic Imperialism" by Efraim Karsh, p115.


Thanks for agreeing with Karsh.

Another acknowledgement. Thanks again.


"There used to be a lot of Armenians living here. After 1915, they were gone. People have different explanations for what happened to them. Some say of lot of them were killed. Did you guys ever hear about that?
After a moment of silence, my friends began to look at each other with embarrassed smirks....
"We didn't just hear about it, we know about it," my engineer friend began. "Our grandfathers were the ones who did the killing. They told us everything. My grandfather said soldiers gave him a coin for every head of an Armenian that he brought to the command post. He told me there were bodies everywhere you went....."
"Don't ever believe that this never happened, or this is was just a minor thing, or that both sides suffered equally. It did happen. Turks and Kurds did it, and Armenians were the victims" --"Crescent and Star" by Stephen Kinzer, p90.

More acknowledgement. Thanks.

Hearsay.

Why didn't the Ottoman Empire relocate the Arabs? Djemal Pasha had crushed a secret society of Arabs intent on revolting in Damascus in 1915, and was even more cruel to the city of Jerusalem. Yet, the empire still didn't "relocate" them.

Sure, they are.


Why use Ottoman archives? When called to a criminal investigation, do you let the accused be his own judge?

Big K

KB,

1- Ottoman Empire relocated Armenian People because:

RELATIONS DURING WORLD WAR I

Ottoman Empire went into war against Britain, France and Russia on November 1, 1914 and Armenian committees considered this as a great opportunity. The Armenians formed voluntary troops and joined the Russian forces. They attacked Eastern Anatolia together with the Russian expeditionary forces. Furthermore, new rebellions were provoked in various parts of Anatolia, Ottoman forces were stabbed in the back, and civil Turks were massacred. The Armenians� targets were not only the Turks but also the Byzantine Greeks around Trabzon and Jews around Hakkari.

Tashnaqsutyun committee was gathered in Erzurum in June 1914 just before the Ottoman Empire began to fight and it took the following decisions:

�Tashnaqsutyun Congress takes into account economic, social and administrative policies contrasting and followed by the government of Party of Union and Progress against Christian factors, and especially Armenians and its deceptive activities about oppression and reforms. So, it decided to remain as an opponent to the party, to criticize party�s political program, to struggle severely against itself and its organization.�

Turkish Armenians living in Marseilles published a declaration at the end of the meeting held on August 5, 1914, when Ottoman Empire declared mobilization just before it went into war. Several statements from the aforementioned declaration which was published in various newspapers were as follows:

�Russian Armenians will fulfil their duties in order to take revenge of the abuse against our brothers� corpses by taking place on the side of Moscow armies. We, Armenians under the tyranny of Turks, shouldn�t point any of our arms to France, which is our second homeland, and to its allies and friends.

Armenians, Turkey calls you to arms without telling you who the enemy is; to enlist voluntarily in the French army and its allies, in order to help the defeat of Wilhelm II�s army whose railways passed over the corpses of 300.000 of our brothers.�

We can easily learn from any sources that Armenians cooperated with Russians when the war broke out.

On this subject Philips Price said that:

�... when the war broke out, Armenians in that region (Eastern towns) contacted with Russian authorities in the Caucasus secretly, and volunteers from Turkish towns were begun to join the Russian forces by the help of an underground organization.�

Rafael de Nogales wrote:

�Garo Pasdermichan (Pastirmaciyan), deputy of Erzurum, passed across the border to join the Russian Army with almost all the Armenian Officials and soldiers the Third Army. After a short while, he returned with the Russian Forces, burned down the Turkish villages, killed violently all the innocent Muslims whom he caught. The measure taken by the Ottoman authorities was to disarm the Armenian soldiers and gendarmes still the army, perhaps they had not has the opportunity to escape, and to transfer them to labor battalions to work in road construction and in equipment transportation.

Clair Price wrote:

� In compliance with the 1908 Constitution, the Government of Enver Pasha had the right to call Armenians to arms together with Turks who were at the right age for military service. However, they immediately began to resist with arms against authorities especially in Zeytun. Along the Eastern borders, Armenians began to escape and join Russian armies. The Government of Enver suspected the loyalty of the rest and transferred them to working battalions.�

The Ottoman Government declared mobilization on August 3. The Armenians of Zeytun refused to stay under the Turkish flag, so they formed Zeytun Commando Regiment under the control of their own officials and wanted to protect their region themselves. But naturally their demand was refused and hence they actually rebelled on August 30. At the end of the pursuit approximately 60 rebels were caught with their arms and peace was established for a short time, but in December people of Zeytun began to attack administrative officers and gendarme again.

In May 1915, Rsussian forces advanced in Eastern Anatolia. English and French forces attacked Çanakkale and in the south, the channel operation was in progress. The domestic situation of the country was as explained. In Zeytun, Van and Mus rebellions broke out, the rebellion in Van led to Rusian occupation, and meanwhile the revolts of Zeytun and Mus were going on. Every corner of the country was full of deserters, every corner was exposed to attacks of gangs. As all adult Turks were in the army, the country was left to Armenians. The State was trying to deal with those rebellions while it was also fighting on the fronts. Under those circumstances the Ottoman Empire had to take the decision of relocation of the rebellious Armenians. (1)

There was another decision taken during the war related to Armenians in Turkey, which actually concerned the Patriarchate. With a new regulation published in Takvim-i Vekayi on August 10, 1916, the relations of Armenian churches in Turkey with Ecmiyazin were stopped completely. Sis and Akdamar Catholicoses were united, the center of Catholicosism was moved to Jerusalem. Istanbul Patriarchate participated in that Catholicosism. It was also decided that the Istanbul Patriarch can only be contacted through sect administration. Moreover, the new regulation established new rules for the election of Patriarchs and the formation of Patriarch Assemblies. (2)

REFERENCE:
1) Gürün, Kamuran, Ermeni Dosyası, TTK Basımevi, Ankara, sh. 193- 209
2) Gürün, a.g.e., sh. 229


AN OVERALL ASSESSMENT OF MASSACRES BY ARMENIANS

The committees such as "Kara Hac / Black Cross", "Armenakan" and "Vatan Koruyuculari / Land Protectors " in Anatolia, " Hinchak " in Geneva, "Tasnak" in Tiblisi, were founded by the Armenians. Their targets were lands in the Eastern Anatolia and the union of the Ottoman Armenians.

The Armenian committees were provoked for this purpose, first they rioted in 1890 in Erzurum, afterwards they organized the Kumkapi demonstration, Kayseri, Yozgat, Corum and Merzifon events, Sasun revolt, Bab-i Ali / Sublime Porte demonstration, Zeytun and Van revolts, The raid of Osmanli Bankasi / Ottoman Bank, assassination trial to Sultan Abdülhamit, and Adana revolt in 1909. Due to the Armenian oppressions, 100 Turks in Zeytun in 1914, 3.000 Turks in Van events in 1915, and 20.000 Turks lost their lives 1914 � 1915, in Mus Events.

Armenians gave the greatest harm to the Turkish people, by the massacring them during the First World War. In this period, the Armenians spied for the Russians, they fled from their military service, by not obeying the mobilisation orders, and those Armenians who were taken under arms joining onto the Russian Army, with their arms, and they thus committed collectively the guilt of being � treacherous to the land �. The Armenian bands that started to attack the Turkish Army and these bands have given great harm to the civilian people, as well. For example, the whole population of the Zeve village of the Van province massacred by the Armenian people without discriminating if they were women, children, or the old.

---------------

TURKISH MASSACRED IN CAVUSOGLU BARNYARD

Prof. Dr. Metin Ozbek, who was conducting observations in the region, tells the event as follows:

I brought some human skeletons found coincidentally during the construction of a house in Cavusoglu Samanligi, and taken to the laboratuary at Hacettepe University in order to examine it. As it is known, Anthropology enables the scientists to know the age and causes of death, sex, ailments, and some other facts by means of skeletons with the aid of advanced techniques and methods. Above all it is possible to determine the which race it belongs to through the examination of a skull. It was impossible to match the skulls with the bones of the body where, the remains of the skeletons we found. Thus, we counted the individual skeletons according to the amount of skulls and we numbered each.

In other words each individual skeleton had a different anthropological identity. We found out that there were five females and four males among the remains. The most prominent criterion that indicates the age of death is �symohysin pubiswhich� is a part of Pelvis. This part was preserved in seven of the individual skeletons we worked on. We demonstrated the age range of skeletons found in Cavusoglu Samanligi as follows.

1. Female (P6)........17-18 age
2. Male (P7)...........17-18 age
3. Female (P4)........18-19 age
4. Female (P3)........27-30 age
5. Male (P2)...........35-40 age
6. Female (P1)........39-44 age
7. Male(P5)............50 age (approximately)
8. Chid (D.1)..........15 age (approximately)

There was a striking common characteristics of the skeletons examined; there were injuries on the skulls which resulted from crushes with cutting tools. Accordingly, the common cause of death was subjection to severe torture.

I. Marks of Cuts on the Skulls:

Nr.1) Female, There are two clefts on the skull caused by sharp-edged instruments. One of them is on the right parietal and it is 42 mm. Long. The second one is also on the right parietal and it is 36 mm. long. Presumably her instant death resulted from the blows directed towards the head.

Nr.2) Female (Photograph 1) We identified the traces of four cuts on the skull. The first one is on the first parietal and it is 95 mm. long. The sharp edged instrument cut through the skull and reached the brain. The second cleft is on both parietals. The cutting tool-most probably an axe hit the Pemals on the head and split the skull open. Such an act is enough to cause instant death. The third stroke left a mark on the left parietal and is 12 mm. to the back of the first cleft.

This scar is 48 mm. long and 19 mm wide and looks like a shuttle. The fourth trace is right at the back of the third and is in the same direction. Half of it is on the occipital bone.

Nr.3) Male (Photograph 2a) He is one of the group having the greatest number of clefts on the skull. The sharp edged tool hit its mark on the left ear and severed to mastoid totally. This blow slightly abraded the occipital bone as well. The second blow hit the left eye and left a deep mark on the frontal. The third mark which is 75 mm. long is on the left parietal. The sharp-edged instrument which entered the brain caused a long cleft between the left tuber parietal and sutura lamb doidalis.

The power of the blow formed some other cracks in the same area. The fourth blow right on top of the head cut the sagittal suture. This cleft is 48 mm. long. The fifth blow is in horizontal plane and severed the right parietal in parts close to the sagittal suture. The instrument hit on the left zygomatic bone. In this area it cut the bone and some parts of the superior maxillary. This person was also burned in fires. (Photograph 2b)

Nr 4) Male (Photograph 3) There are marks of three blows directed towards the brain. The first one is a vertical cleft which is 37 mm long. The second horizontal one is along the parietal and frontal. It is 92 mm. long. The third blow was also on the left parietal and caused a cleft which is 49 mm long and 21 mm wide.

The sharp-edged tool severed the tabule externa. These blows resulted in an instant death. Like the person, this one was also burned after death.

Nr.5) Female (Photograph 4). We discovered four cutting marks on the skull. The first one on the frontal is 28 mm. long and not very deep. The second one is at the top part, along both sides of the parietal and it is 77 mm long. This cleft is deep enough to be the sign demonstrating her instant death. The third blow on the right ear was also fatal. It severed the mastoid totally and cut the inferior maxillary partly. The fourth mark is on the front part of the right upper jaw.

Nr.6) Male (Photograph 5). An adult which has four clefts on the head. The first one on the left parietal is quite deep. It is 57 mm. long and 14 mm. wide. The cutting tool entered the brain as well. On the side of the sagittal suture there is a 23 mm long crevice. The second one is on the saggittal suture. It is 29 mm. long and 28 mm wide. This crevice is intersected by other two clefts. The horizontal one ise 43 mm. and the oblique one is 42 mm. The third cleft is also oblique. It is on the right parietal, a few mm. to the front of the parietal cavity. The foruth mark is made by a sharp pointed instrument. It is caused by a blow struck on the head close to the sagittal suture. The individual was probably tortured severely.

Nr.7) Male: There are signs of five hard blows. The first one is in the area of the left auditory canal. The sharp-edged instrument severed the mastoid totally. It even severed the zygomatic partly. There were two blows stuck on the left ear one after the other. They probably caused death right at that moment. The second mark is closer to the lambda suture on the right parietal. This cleft is partly on the horizontal plane and it is 41 mm long. The third crevice is between the two lambda suture on the occipital. It is 44 mm. long. The fourth one is quite deep and 48 mm. long. It is situated on the procenus occipital externa. The fifth crevice is right on the back of the skull. It is 53 mm. long.

Nr.8) Female: The skeleton belongs to a girl who died at about the age of fifteen. There are three cutting marks on the skull. The first crevice is deep and reaches the brain area. It is on the right parietal and 50 mm. long. The second one is situated in a vertical position and 20 mm. long The third one is right at the back part. This teenager was burnt in fire after being killed.

Nr.9) Female: She died at about the age 17 or 19. There are no signs of blows on the preserved bones of the skull. The main parts of the occipital were either broken or lost. It is impossible to state the reasons of death.

II. Identification of race through skeletons:

It is possible to identify race by measurement, index, and morphological observation of the skulls. However there are variations in each group of race. By means of Anthropometric techniques we examined the skeletons found in Cavusoglu Samanligi. We calculated the cephalic index which is the most prominent criteria in race studies. We took the measurement of the eight skulls. The indexes varied between 76 and 89. This result showed that four are mesocaphalic and the others are brachycephalic. We never came across with dolchocephalic group. In Anatolia Alpina race which includes both mesocephalic and brachycephalic ones, all the skeletons belonged to Alpine group to which Anatolian Turks belong. The skeleton of the female whose death age is between 17 and 19 does not belong to this group. It is in the east variation of the Dinaric race which is called Armenoid.

While evaluating the heights we used the regression equations of Trotter and Gleser. Where the three female skeletons are concerned, the results are 52.9 cm. 159.2 cm and 168.2 cm. The results related with the three men are 170.1, 172.4 and 173.5 cm.

Along with the skeltons, we also found one (shirt) button, a sharp-edged iron piece and a part of an upper jaw. According to Prof.Dr.Ilber Uzel from the Dept. of Dentistry at Gülhane Medicine Academy, the fragment of the upper total Prothesis belong to the right posterior. The prosthesis is rubber and the teeth are porcelain. Prostheses were used by the members of higher classes in 1900 s. Acatin traces (on the prosthesis) suggest the possibility of a Male owner.

This type of porcelain was used between the years of 1915-1925 and produced by an American firm known as SSN. The epoch, there skeletons belong to is thus proved in this way as well.

III. Marks on the long bones:

Despite a large number of cutting marks on the skulls, there are very few cuts on the other bones of the skeletons. Virtually, this is because of the fact that in fatal attempts the most appropriate part of the body is the head since it is vulnerable.

1.There are three clefts on the diaphysis of the humerus of an adult. This depicts that signs of the adult was burned.

2.On the front side of the diaphysis of the right tibia of a women there is a deep cutting mark.

3.There is a deep cutting mark in the lower parts of the right tibia of a male.

IV. General Conclusion and Evaluation:

The skeletons which were coincidentally found in Cavusoglu Samanligi (Ercis) were examined thoroughly in terms of antrophological methods. It is concluded that these skeletons belong to mostly young people who were deliberately killed and some of them were burned. The skulls demonstrated that these skeletons belong to people from the Alpin race-type. Where Anatolia is concerned, they most probably belong to Turks. The scientific discoveries prove that these people were subjected to severe torture and killed brutally. These facts confirm the statements of the witnesses who live in the same area today. Thus the part of history related to Armenians has to be rewritten because the people who were massacred violently were not the Armenians but the Turks.

Prof. Dr. Metin ÖZBEK
Anthropologist

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THE REPORT ON EXCAVATION OF THE MASS-GRAVES IN KARS - SUBATAN

One of the excavations of the mass-graves aiming to explore the events happened in Eastern Anatolia betweeen 1915 and 1918 has been done in Kars-Subatan (Figure 1.) The opening of the mass-graves in Subatan village which is situated near Ani Örenyeri, on the boarders of Turkey-Russia, 28 kilometres in the east of Kars was carried out on Governor of Kars, S.Filtekin, the Mayor of Kars, Prof.Dr.Hursit Ertugrul, the president of Atatürk University, Prof.Dr.Ahmet Cakir, the dean of Science and Literature Faculty of the same university and Prof.Dr.Enver Konukcu, Prof.Dr.Azmi Süslü from Ankara University, Prof.Dr.Metin Özbek from Hacettepe University, Prof.Dr.Fahrettin Kirzioglu From Gazi University, Prof.Dr.Metin Tuncel from Istanbul University, Assoc.Prof.Dr.Abdüsselam Ulucam from 100.Yil University and Ali Ercan, the director of Kars museum.

The excavations in Subatan village which has about 20-30 houses of Moslem population today were carried out in accordance with the oral statements of 120 year old Fariz Öztürk and 95 year old Duraga Öztürk who witnessed the events. They were conducted in a 8x10 meter hole which was opened in the barn in Köseogullari district (Figure 2). The first works were started in A1 hole within the field divided into four separate 4-5 meter areas. The excavation which had been realized in a wide surface first was narrowed down to the inner crosspoint of A1 and B1 holes After having removed the 40 centimeter earth, the first skeletons were found. It was observed that most of these skeletons which were found with some personal belongings belong to children between the age groups of 0-1.

Another group of skeletons which was found in 80 centimeters depth in A1 hole displayed quite a shocking scene. These skeletons which were located in the north-south direction must belong to a mother and her daughter. The woman fell onto her right side and embraced the child with her left arm. The two stroke marks found on the head of the woman prove that they were killed with an axe or some other sharp instrument. The first stroke mark is not as deep as the second one. Both the woman and the child were buried in their clothes.

The photograph taken on April 25 th 1918

Another skeleton group was found in the south corner of A1 hole. Only a few of these could be analyzed. As these analyses show, bodies were thrown haphazardly. The rest of the findings were after of a belt, a pair of ear-rings, a number of colored beads of a small necklace; decayed wooden beams and were given to Kars Museum to be displayed in the newly opened Genocide Section for exhibition.

According to the oral statements of the witnesses, Fariz Öztürk and Duraga Öztürk whose statements are supported by the archive documents, the massacre committed by Armenians happened in the following way: The Tashnak-Armenian guerrillas who retreated from Kars and Sarikamis attacked Subatan village where Turkish, Armenian and Greek people lived together were captured wildly without feeling pity. According to the photographs in the archives and findings of the excavations, the women, children and old men who had been killed with axes and bayonets were left in the streets. The archive documents show that a total of 570 people were murdered in the village. After the withdrawal of Armenians, Turkish soldiers came to the district. The soldiers with the help of survivors collected the corpses, which were decayed and eaten by dogs, to an area and put them in a barn. Due to the hard conditions of that time and lack of time, the bodies were buried together. Some other mass-graves were formed by collapsing the roofs of barns. The archive documents and statements of witnesses show that in three separate mass-graves in Subatan, there are a numbers of martyrs buried. In the barn in Köseogullari district , more than 180, in Tiptip street more than 25 and in the barn which is located in the south of the village mosque more than 350 bodies are buried.

Prof. Dr. Cevat BASARAN
Archaeologist

----------

THE EXCAVATION OF VAN - ZEVE MASS-GRAVE

Armenian Massacres in Van - Interview with Witnesses

In the excavations that were started on April 4th 1990 in the cemetery for martyrs near Zeve which is in the vicinity of Citören Village that is located at 18 km. north-west of Van province, in accordance with oral statements of the eyewitness "Ibrahim Sargin" who witnessed the event, after removal of 30-40 cm thick earth, massacred human skeletons were found. It was observed that some of the skulls were broken, some were crushed and some were cracked and burnt. The most important findings of the excavations were poniard (khanjars) and daggers, a lot of cartridges, pieces of silk clothes, necklaces with bead of Sultan Reshad's monogram, amulets covered with wax, copper coins and glass buttons.

When these findings are combined with the statements of the eyewitness, the following information are obtained: The Armenian guerrillas who entered the district under Russian support in 1915 started attacking the villages, killing innocent Turkish and Moslem people. The Armenian guerillas brought into Zeve village about 2000-2500 people who were gathered by force from eight villages in the district and were put in houses and barns. They first tortured these people with piercing and cutting tools and then opened fire at them. Then, they set all houses on fire. Materials found in the excavation have been exhibited at

" Massacre Section" in Van Museum.

Prof. Dr. Cevat BASARAN
Archaeologist


------------------------

THE EXCAVATION THE MASS-GRAVE IN ERZURUM-DUMLU-YESILYAYLA VILLAGE

The excavation of the mass-grave in Erzurum - Yesilyayla Village, to which even foreign press was attended, was carried out on October 7th 1988.

Arkeolog Doc. Dr. Cevat Basaran

Anxiety;"They where also human, they have the right to live.

In Yesilyayla massacre which we learned from the memories of "Kazim Karabekir Pasa", old men, women and children who were gathered by force were put in a barn and opened fire at them. The tobacco boxes with crescent and star, pages of Koran, cartridges, pieces of a half-burned wooden post, some long pigtails of hair, pieces of silk dress and small dress buttons were found in the field of excavation. Approximately up to 100 of skeletons were excavated from the mass-grave. Materials found in the excavation have been exhibited in Erzurum museum.

Prof. Dr. Cevat BASARAN
---------------------

EXCAVATION OF THE MASS-GRAVE IN IGDIR - OBA VILLAGE

Prof. Dr. Enver Konukcu is the first person who discovered that there were mass-graves which belonged to the Turks massacred by the Armenians in Oba Village of Igdir. This information was supported by the documents of archive. On March 1st 1986, in the excavation of the mass-grave, findings verifying the historical documents were obtained and the massacre of "Tandir Dami" told by Sakine Aksu who was one of the living eyewitnesses became even clearer.

At the excavation, the first hole of 6x8 meters was started in the inner part of the northern door and a closed "iron lock" was found. The second hole was dug in the central part of the room and approximately 90 human skeletons were found under an earth layer of one meter thick.

The stone base (floor) in the south of the Tandir which was situated in the middle of the room must have belonged to the only wooden post which had supported the earth-covered roof and the burnt pieces of that column were also found.

By combining these findings with the statement of the eyewitness, it is realised that the " Tandir Dami" massacre occured as follows: most of the unarmed civil people from Oba Village were gathered by force and subjected to torture and then they had been laid as face down and locked them in the room, and opened fire at them. And then the Armenian guerrillas set the "Tandir Dami" on fire by pouring kerosene into the chimney and the earth roof collapsed after burning of the wooden column. During the excavation, melted iron pieces, burnt wooden pieces, pieces of glass, bullets and skeletons and pieces of clothes were found. Thick burnt layer and ash layer on the wall and floor of the house showed that other evidences and proofs had been disappeared with the fire.

Prof. Dr. Cevat BASARAN
Archaeologist

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IGDIR GENOCIDE MONUMENT AND MUSEUM

Scientists and politicians from many countries took part in the International Symposium on Historical realities and Armenians, held in Igdir from 24 to 26 April 1965. As the project prepared by one the participants from Azerbaijan, Architect Professor Dr. Cafer Gayisi, for commemorating the Turks massacred by Armenians, a need was expressed for the erection of this monument and this opinion was stated as follows in the final declaration of the symposium: �Resolved, that a monument of martyrs should be erected in Igdir and a cemetery for martyrs should be established in Oba Village in order to eternalise the memories of more than one million Turks that fell in Eastern Anatolia and to give a similar answer to those declaring the 24th April as the genocide day and to the monuments erected in many places of the world for the genocide alleged to have been perpetrated against the Armenians. The monument to be erected in Igdir will enable us to remember to the eternity the unpleasant days of the past and the colonialist Powers seeding enmity among us, and shed light for our future on the basis of friendship, good neighbourhood and co-operation.�

The location selected for the genocide monument is at the eastern entrance of the City of Igdir, that is, at the junction of roads from Azerbaijan, Iran and Armenia. The selected triangular area has a surface of 1,3 hectares and the monument will rise on a diminutive Agri Mountain. Its foundation was laid on 1 August 1997.

The monument is erected at the focal point of the triangle, on a mound rising 7,20 metres above the ground in form of a mound. The tradition had it that the mounds erected for the rulers and army commanders who once lived in the Eurasian steppes, these immense stretches inhabited by the Turks, had the sarcophagus in the centre. The circular hall constructed underneath the mound has the symbolic grave of the Turks massacred by the Armenians and constitutes the main section of the genocide museum. The Armenian bloodthirstiness is shown with the pictures of the mass graves of massacred Turks. Photographs of the massacres perpetrated by Armenians are posted in the room at the right-hand side of the corridor extending from this circular hall while the opposite room contains the library for the genocide studies.

The main entrance of the museum is designed in form of a crown door after the Selchuk-Turkish architectural traditions. A compositional similarity is also noticed with the Ottoman mosque pulpits in the spatial design, suggesting an entry into a holy location. The claret and black granite slabs used at the entrance door and frames of small-size windows which are relatively few connote the grievous and mournful nature of the genocide.

A 36-metre high sheaf of swords rise from the centre of the mound to commemorate the Turkish Army that saved the innocent Moslem people from the genocide and its martyrs and warriors. The swords, five in number, are placed in a pentagonal plan. Viewed from above, the swords represent the star in the Turkish flag constituting the symbol of the Turkish State.

Soldiers of the ancient Turkish armies had the tradition of honing their swords under wind, rain and lightning before entering the battlefield. Thus, the swords pointed against the sky within sight of the Mount Ararat will depict the might of the Turkish armies before any would-be intruder and the Armenians, whose national goal is to get hold of the Mount Ararat and its vicinity, now see the Turkish swords raising against them.

The curved tips of the five huge swords unite above and take the shape of a dome, reminiscent of the Selchuk shrines. The Turkish-Oghuz funeral architecture tradition was to erect dome-like shrines on the tombs of rulers, heroes, commanders and other dignitaries. The Selchuk shrines consist traditionally of an underground tomb and a surface tower section and so has the Igdir monument two stories. The underground stratum is the museum part while the five swords depict the tower-like structure.

The Igdir monument is thence designed to embody the three major features of the Turkish memorial architecture dating back to Ions in the past: The mound, the Selchuk shrine and the epitaphs and created a composition conformant to the demands of contemporary architectural construction demands.

The sword in a man�s hand is fearsome and those stacked together represent the peace, well-being and strength and show also the defence will of the nation. The sharp edges turned outward suggest readiness against any intrusions from outside.

The circular museum hall (the underground structure representing the tomb) and the tent-like pentagonal glass light shaft is between the swords. The shaft, made of gold-plated frames and coloured glass, epitomises the golden tent, a masterpiece of the Turkish architecture. Flag of the State used to wave on the golden tent, the symbol of the sovereignty. The golden tent, pitched on the centre of the bivouacs of the armies on the go, used to be protected with extraordinary measures of defence. Thus, five swords protect the Turkish flag rising atop the golden tent in the monument.

The sword�s sanctity is reflected also in its aesthetic design. The butt of the Turkish sword, quite an efficient instrument, used to be inlaid with precious stones and metals. So are the butts of the Igdir monument�s swords, embellished with bronze relieves and ornaments within granite frames. The grey wolf, horse and twin-headed eagle patterns are repeated on all the five swords.

The grey wolf is the main totem of ancient Turkish tribes and became the national symbol from Hun to Ottoman Empire. Before the adoption of Islam by the Turks, a grey wolf�s head was used to be put on the tips of flagpoles, replaced later by the crescent and star.

The admiration for the grey wolf as a strong, freedom-loving and intelligent animal exists among all Turks from the Altai Mountains to Anatolia. During the presidency of Ghazi Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the grey wolf was depicted on the banknotes, postage stamps and many other official documents. The existence of the grey wolf relief on the sword�s butt is an indication of the respect for national set of values and obedience to the Atatürk�s ideals.

The sword era in the history was at the same time the horse era. According to the Turkish historians, the great conquests of the Turks were due to their great mastery of two arts: Horse training and mining, and especially the smith-craft. The latter was important for manufacturing and shaping swords while the horse training was essential for covering great distances in the wars that never ended. The Turkish soldier always departed with his sword, horse and tent for military expeditions.

The horse another one of the main totems of the Turks and inseparable friend and helper of the soldier. You may not imagine the sword without horse and the Turk without a horse and a sword. For this reason, all sword butts have a rearing horse figure in relief. It was the symbol of heroism, happiness and sun. The are at both sides of the butt.

The inner sides have twin-headed eagle figures. The Altaic figures carved into rocks suggest that the eagle also was totemised as a sign of grandeur and magnificence among the Turks. The double-headed eagle symbolised first the Hittite Empire and the Byzance Emperors had later adopted it for themselves. Used finally by the Selchuk Empire as its coat-of-arms, it stands at the apogee of this centuries-long tradition as the Byzance Empire finally crumbled before the Turkish might.

The outer sides of the butts have soldier reliefs together with grey wolves, horses and eagles as the products of the ancient Turkish symbology. The soldier figures are different in each of the swords on the monument and each butt depicts a soldier of Hun, Göktürk, Selchuk, Ottoman and modern Turkish soldier.

Having created magnificent empires in various periods of the history, the Turkish soldier deserves the greatest of all monuments. Epitomised in bronze in the sword butts of the monument, symbolise all the soldierlike generations throughout the history as the staunch defenders of the nation, peace and order.

Monument�s foundation was laid on 1 August 1997 by Igdir�s Governor Semsettin Uzun. The circumferential walls of the complex were masoned with stones from Ahlat quarries and their cones were ornamented with wrought iron grills. Museum door, windows and drawers are of chestnut wood, the swords were coated with grey Bianco Maris granite imported from Italy use was made of African red granite for s