The arrest and (inevitable) release by Kirghiz authorities of Erhan Arikli, wanted on an Interpol warrant for his involvement in the murder of Tassos Isaac, has reminded us not only of the savagery of the 1996 Green Line killings (which included the shooting of Solomos Solomou) but also the nature of the regime in occupied Cyprus, the thugs who created and sustain it.
Arikli’s biography tells us he was born in 1962 in Ardahan, a provincial city (formerly populated by Greeks and Armenians) in northeastern Turkey, close to the Georgian border. Along with his family, Arikli came to Cyprus aged 14 and settled in the occupied Greek village of Lapithos, in the Kyrenia district. At the time of the Isaac murder, Arikli was president in the occupied areas of the student wing of the fanatical pan-Turanian organisation, Turk-Bir. For the last 14 years, he has been living in Kirghizstan, travelling between that Turkic republic, Turkey and occupied Cyprus on a so-called ‘diplomatic passport’ issued by the ‘TRNC’. Arikli’s job in Kirghizstan has been to promote tourism and business opportunities in the Turkish-occupied part of Cyprus. His brother, Guven Arikli, is a senior member of the occupation regime, acting as director of ‘prime minister’ Irsen Kucuk’s office.Below are the names and details of the other suspects wanted by Cypriot authorities for the murders of Isaac and Solomou.
In relation to the Isaac lynching, as well as Erhan Arikli, Interpol warrants are outstanding for:
- Hasim Yilmaz, a Turkish settler, former member of Turkey’s secret service, now running a coffee shop in occupied Kyrenia;
- Mustafa Ergun, a Turkish settler and ‘police officer’ in the occupation regime;
- Polat Fikret Koreli, a Turkish Cypriot from Famagusta;
- Fikret Veli Koreli, a Turkish Cypriot bicycle workshop owner from Famagusta; and
- Mehmet Mustafa Arslan, a Turkish settler and leader of the ultranationalist Grey Wolves in the Turkish-occupied areas.
- Kenan Akin, at the time of the murder, ‘minister’ for agriculture in the occupation regime;
- Erdal Emanet, who was head of special services in the occupation regime’s ‘police’ force;
- Attila Sav, former chief of ‘police’ in the ‘TRNC’;
- Lt. Gen. Hasan Kundakci, then head of the Turkish Cypriot ‘armed forces’; and
- Maj. Gen. Mehmet Karli, former head of the Turkish occupation forces in Cyprus.
