Strangely enough, the massacres organized against Armenians, Greeks, Assyrians and Jews in Turkey on 6-7 September 1955, took place in the city of Mardin famous for its tolerance.

Besides Istanbul and a number of large cities, the massacres of 6-7 September 1955 also took place in small cities like Mardin, where Armenians and Assyrians lived side by side with Turks and Kurds, the Turkish website Demokrathaber reports.

The article presents the testimonies of a witness of those events. According to him, when robbing the houses of Assyrians, the Muslims cried: “Either the wife of Budros (Peter) or half of Cyprus.” Similarly, they cried “Either the wife of Petros (Peter) or half of Petros” when robbing Armenians.  

“Shocked by the events, Petros Melus abandoned his house and property in Mardin and left for Syria with his family. At that time we also left Mardin, and settled on the islands of Istanbul,” the witness, who was 13 then, said.

During the atrocities of Turks on 6-7 September 1955, 16 people were killed. Three of them were discovered burnt in a bag. Over 500 Christians were wounded then.

Overall, 4214 houses, 1004 offices, 73 churches, 26 schools and other institutions were robbed.