September 13, 1955
POLITICAL CRISIS: The collapse of the Tripartite Conference (between Greece, Turkey, Britain) in London, combined with the brutality of the Turks in Istanbul and Izmir toward the Greek minority, have created a political crisis. (Ed. note: The prime minister, Field Marshall Alexandros Papagos, was gravely ill.) All the opposition parties have accused the government of a lack of skill in handling the Cyprus issue in London and of not showing sufficient national dignity in the face of the Turkish excesses, leading to a total loss of face. These views were expressed in yesterday’s talks between the party leaders and the deputy prime minister, Mr Stephanos Stephanopoulos, and in statements by political party leaders, leading to the conclusion that the government should be recalled and an emergency session of Parliament held. VANDALISM: Istanbul, 12 – Hordes of vandals have destroyed 1,100 shops and 600 homes owned by Greeks. Turkish Prime Minister Adnan Menderes has claimed that the reason for the excesses was the prior cooling of relations and rumors of an imminent slaughter of Turks in Cyprus.
