SAYFO

NICOSIA, Cyprus — Yesterday, 19 June, the Parliament of the Republic of Cyprus unanimously recognized 19 May as Pontic Greek Remembrance Day. The official designation comes after the introduction of a motion by MP Charalambos Theopemptou (Movement of Ecologists – Citizens’ Cooperation, KOSP) calling for institutional recognition of the genocide…

SIEBNEN, Switzerland — On the solemn occasion of the 110th anniversary of the Sayfo Genocide, during which approximately 1.5 million Armenians, Syriacs (Arameans–Assyrians–Chaldeans), and Greeks were massacred at the hands of the Ottoman Empire and its allies, a memorial event was held at the Catholic Church in Siebnen, Switzerland. The…

LATAKIA, Syria — The Syriac Orthodox Church in Latakia solemnly marked the 110th anniversary of the Sayfo Genocide, a systematic campaign of mass killings perpetrated by the Ottoman Empire against the Syriac (Aramean–Assyrian–Chaldean) people and other Christian communities during World War I. A Divine Liturgy was celebrated at the Greek…

HASAKAH, North and East Syria — Under a warm June sky, the Syriac Cultural Association hosted a solemn commemoration of the 1915 Sayfo Genocide in Hasakah, North and East Syria, featuring a theatrical performance and a moving candlelight vigil to honor the hundreds of thousands of Syriacs (Arameans–Assyrians–Chaldeans) who were…

DARAMSUQ — In two solemn observances marking the 110th anniversary of the Sayfo Genocide, Syriac Orthodox Patriarch Mor Ignatius Aphrem II presided over evening prayers and a candlelight procession at the Syriac Orthodox Patriarchate in Bab Touma on Saturday, then celebrated the Divine Liturgy at the Martyrs’ Altar in Ma‘arat…

SÖDERTÄLJE, Sweden / ENSCHEDE, The Netherlands — On a balmy summer evening last June, the Södertälje municipal council voted unanimously to erect Sweden’s first national monument to the 1915 Sayfo Genocide, a long-awaited tribute to the more than two million Syriacs (Arameans–Assyrians–Chaldeans), Armenians, and Greeks massacred by Ottoman Empire and…

On 15 June, Syriac (Aramean–Assyrian–Chaldean) communities around the world solemnly remembered the Sayfo Genocide, marking 110 years since the coordinated massacres carried out by the Ottoman Empire and its Kurdish tribal allies in 1915. From Europe to Australia, public ceremonies, liturgies, and educational forums underscored a unified call for official…

BETH ZALIN and DAYRIK, North and East Syria — As part of the 110th anniversary commemoration of the Sayfo Genocide committed by the Ottoman Empire against the Syriac (Aramean–Assyrian–Chaldean) people in 1915, the Syriac Union Party (Gabo d’Ḥuyodo Suryoyo, SUP) organized memorial events in Beth Zalin (Qamishli) and Dayrik (Derik /…

ISTANBUL — Two of Turkey’s pro-democracy and leftist political movements, the Peoples’ Democratic Congress (Turkish: Halkların Demokratik Kongresi, HDK) and the Socialist Party of the Oppressed (Ezilenlerin Sosyalist Partisi, ESP), issued statements this week commemorating the 110th anniversary of the Sayfo genocide, a series of mass killings carried out by…

IWARDO, Turkey — Residents of Iwardo village in Tur Abdin, southeastern Turkey, gathered at the historic Virgin Mary Church to commemorate the victims of the 1915 Sayfo Genocide. The ceremony reflected on the atrocities committed against the Syriac (Aramean–Assyrian–Chaldean) community during that period.  The Virgin Mary Church, once a strategic…