Thirty years after the murders of Tassos Isaac and Solomos Solomos, members of their families and eyewitnesses speak to CNA about the tragic events of August 1996, offering harrowing personal accounts of those dramatic days that left an indelible mark on their lives.

In the CNA special report, Anastasia Isaac, Stella Solomou, eyewitnesses to the events Yiannis Antoniou (currently Deputy Government Spokesperson) and Andreas Pettemeridis, as well as the representative of the Isaac – Solomou, Dr. Kyriakos Yagou.

At the same time, the President of the Kyrenia Bar Association, Nikolas Konstantinidis, analyzes the legal aspects of the murders. He focuses on Turkey’s conviction by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) and outlines the current status regarding arrest warrants, based on the briefing he provided to the House of Representatives in November 2025, by the then Minister of Justice.  Furthermore, it refers to the legal actions that the Republic of Cyprus could pursue today, including the issuance of European Arrest Warrants.

The 1996 pan-European anti-occupation march to Kyrenia 

In the summer of 1996, the Cyprus Motorcyclists’ Federation organized a pan-European anti-occupation rally starting in Berlin and ending in occupied Kyrenia. However, following a joint decision by political leaders and motorcycle club leaders to cancel the leg of the ride within Cyprus, a group of motorcyclists disagreed and continued their ride toward the Deryneia roadblock and other roadblocks in the area, where serious clashes broke out within the buffer zone.

On August 11, in the Deryneia buffer zone, 24-year-old Tasos Isaac was beaten to death by Turkish Cypriots and members of the Grey Wolves, while UN blue helmets stood by idly as the events unfolded before them.

Three days later, on the day of Tassos Isaac’s funeral, his 26-year-old cousin, Solomos Solomou, attempted to take down the Turkish flag from a flagpole at an outpost of the occupying forces. He was fatally shot in front of television cameras, in footage that was broadcast live around the world and sparked an international outcry.

A heartfelt testimony from Stella Solomou and Anastasia Isaac, who continue to seek justice thirty years later 

“My father sacrificed himself for the freedom of our homeland. His sacrifice was not the result of a military conflict between armies, but of a peaceful anti-occupation demonstration by motorcyclists who were demanding the obvious: freedom of movement in their own homeland,” Tassos Isaac’s daughter, Anastasia Isaac, told CNA.

She noted that “30 years later, the message of his sacrifice remains unchanged. It is a timeless lesson in courage, dignity, and selfless struggle for the freedom of our homeland.”

When asked what it’s like to grow up bearing the name of a man who is a symbol for Cyprus, she said, “It is an honor to grow up bearing the name of Tassos Isaac, a man of pure heart, who did nothing more than save the life of a fellow human being.”

“If I were born again, I would choose his name once more. A name synonymous with dignity and courage. At the same time, however, I feel a duty to carry on what I learned from his sacrifice—to continue the struggle to keep his memory alive,” she emphasized.

Regarding her annual participation in the events of the Isaac-Solomos Memorial Initiative, she noted that she became a member of the Initiative in 2016.

“We have grown alongside the Initiative, and drawing strength from their sacrifice, we continue to pass on the message of remembrance until justice is served,” she said.

When asked what, for her, would constitute true vindication of her father’s sacrifice, she noted that it involves not only punishing the murderers but also delivering justice to all those who continue to suffer the consequences of the Turkish invasion and occupation.

“True justice for me would not only be the obvious— that the murderers of both my father and Solomos be brought to justice, but that justice be served to all those who have suffered and been affected as a result of the Turkish invasion and occupation,” he noted.

As he explained, this concerns everyone who continues to suffer the consequences, “whether they are families of missing persons, victims of the war, or people who cannot return to their homes, their property, and the places where they grew up.”

Anastasia called for justice “for all those who struggle every day, still carrying the scars of the Turkish invasion and occupation.”

“The message I want to pass on to the younger generation is what we used to write in our notebooks: ‘I will not forget.’ Let us not forget our history, our lands, or the people we have lost, as they remind us of the values we must uphold,” concluded Anastasia Isaac, calling on the younger generation to keep historical memory alive.

“Thirty years after my brother’s murder, both I and my family feel indescribable awe and pride for his bravery. His memory will forever remain alive in our hearts. He is a beacon that will never fade,” Solomos Solomos’s sister, Stella Solomos, told CNA.

“However, we carry an unbearable bitterness and disappointment because it has not yet been possible to arrest the murderers of our Solakis and Tassos and bring them to justice. The fact that the murderers are walking free, protected by the occupying forces, proves the hypocrisy of those who speak of human rights,” she added.

Describing the character of Solomos Solomos, she noted that her brother “was a generous man, full of life, with a pure love for his family, his friends, and his homeland. He always had the courage of his convictions and never bowed his head to injustice.”

“His thirst for freedom consciously led him to his act. He climbed the flagpole to right the wrong and restore dignity to our homeland,” she emphasized.

Referring to her most vivid memory of her brother, she said they had met two days before his murder.

“I remember that he was wearing a very nice black belt that he had bought a few days earlier. When I told him, ‘Your belt is very nice,’ despite the pain he was feeling at that moment over Tassos’s death, he looked at me with his bright eyes and, with a smile full of life, gave it to me,” said Ms. Solomou.

“That was Solakis—a man who wanted to bring joy to the people he loved without asking for anything in return. His gaze and his smile will remain in my memory forever,” she added.

She also revealed that her brother “had told his friends that he was going to take down the flag, but he avoided telling my brother when they met at the roadblock the day before his murder because he knew he might be able to talk him out of it.”

“He was determined to take down the flag, and you could see it in his eyes. His action was not a spur-of-the-moment decision; it was not an act of the moment. It was a conscious decision in the face of the injustice of the occupation,” she emphasized.

When asked what would truly do justice to his sacrifice, she made it clear that the family is not seeking revenge but justice.

“True justice for my brother’s sacrifice would be bringing his murderers to justice and the withdrawal of Turkish troops from our Cyprus,” she noted.

“We are not seeking revenge. We are seeking justice and freedom,” he clarified.

He added, “We are seeking the justice that Solomos, Tasos, and all the heroes who sacrificed themselves for our homeland were denied. The justice that our family and all Cypriot citizens—refugees and non-refugees alike—were denied. The right to move freely throughout our homeland without the presence of Turkish troops. Only then will his sacrifice truly be vindicated.”

Referring to the impact her brother’s loss had on the family, she said that his absence “left a huge void in our family. But we do not focus on death; we focus on the courage and refusal of our Solakis to come to terms with the occupation.”

In closing, Ms. Solomou thanked the Mayor of Paralimni – Deryneia, the sculptor Filippos Giapanis, and everyone who contributed to the creation of the monument in Paralimni, as well as the Isaac-Solomou Memorial Initiative for preserving the memory of the two heroes.

“No sacrifice is in vain as long as we do not forget it,” concluded Stella Solomou.

Shocking testimonies from eyewitnesses Yiannis Antonios and Andreas Petemeridis

“From the first days of August, tension was palpable in the air, especially after the open threats by the Denktash regime that the Turkish army and the so-called ‘security forces’ would respond if the motorcyclists attempted to cross into the occupied territories,” Deputy Government Spokesperson Yiannis Antoniou, who was then working as a reporter for Fileleftheros, told CNA.

“Due to the heightened security measures and the police’s intention to close roads, I had gone to Deryneia on the evening of Saturday, August 10, along with my colleagues, Christakis Giannakos and photojournalist Andreas Manolis,” he said.

Continuing his account, he noted that “at some point around noon on Sunday, word had spread that the leadership of the organized motorcyclists had agreed with the then-President of the Republic, Glafkos Clerides, to end the motorcyclists’ ride at Makarios Stadium in Nicosia.”

As he noted, “when the decision to cancel the trip to the occupied areas was announced, we observed the withdrawal of police forces that had gathered in the Deryneia area and elsewhere along the line of confrontation.”

“I also recall members of parliament making strongly critical statements about the decision, accusing the government of backing down under pressure from Denktash’s threats,” he added.

However, as he explained, “when the motorcyclists reacted to their leadership’s decision and decided to continue their journey as planned from Nicosia to the occupied territories, people began arriving in the Deryneia area, at Strovilia, and at other roadblocks in the wider region.”

“From the Deryneia checkpoint, where most of the journalists—from Cyprus, Greece, and international news agencies, the mobilization of military forces in the occupied territories was visible,” he noted.

Describing what unfolded next, he said that “when the motorcyclists arrived there, quite a few civilians had already gathered. In the fields to the left of the roadblock—as we see it looking toward the occupied territories—there was a barbed-wire fence, which had been flattened in some places.”

As he explained, “From there, quite a few people from the occupied areas—journalists as well as various others—were crossing into the free areas in civilian clothing.”

Continuing his testimony, he said that “At one point, a mob had formed across from us; they were moving aggressively, shouting, hurling insults, and using slingshots to throw stones at us. To protect ourselves, we gathered behind a water truck that had been abandoned in the field. I remember that there were quite a few of us journalists there, including the veteran reporter Alex Efthivoulou, who made the tragic prediction: “There will be deaths today.”

“About ten minutes later, when the stone-throwing stopped and we moved away from the water truck, we saw them beating Tassos Isaac with clubs; he had been trapped in the barbed wire,” said Mr. Antoniou. 

As he reported, “At the same time, 4–5 people from the mob attacked a young woman wearing a T-shirt with the Greek flag and snatched the jewelry she was wearing. I ran to help her, and that’s when they snatched the camera I was holding and threw it away. A peacekeeper who was next to me safely led me away.”

Mr. Antoniou continued his testimony, saying, “Then I saw my colleague, Christakis Giannakos, along with others, carrying Tassos—who was covered in blood—with their bare hands and placing him in an open jeep-type vehicle. We left there, and after stopping by the Paralimni Hospital to file a report, we headed to Nicosia to develop the photos we’d taken and write our reports.”

“It was one of the most difficult reports I’ve ever written, because it was hard to put what I experienced down on paper. It was the first time I’d ever seen a person killed—and so brutally, at that. It took many years before I was able to go to the Deryneia roadblock, and to this day it is extremely painful for me to see photographs from that horrific day, several of which are my own,” Mr. Antoniou concluded.

“After Tassos Isaac’s funeral, people spontaneously poured into the streets again, and we went to the area where Tassos Isaac was murdered to lay a wreath, where a large number of police forces were deployed,” Andreas Pettemerides told CNA; he was an eyewitness to the tragic events that unfolded at the Deryneia roadblock on August 14, 1996.

He noted that the police had formed a massive cordon of cars and officers to prevent people from passing through, but as he put it, “that wasn’t enough to stop him from getting inside.”

He said that “at some point, we broke through the cordon and found ourselves back inside the exclusion zone. The UN personnel were trying to stop us; it was chaos. The tension was extremely high.”

In his testimony to KYPE, he stated that “at one point, when we were on the left side of the road leading to the Deryneia roadblock, someone rushed forward to try to get through on his own. Right there in front of him was the last earthen embankment with the barbed wire. I pulled him back—I didn’t know him. I said to him, “Hey, where are you going? Stay right here, because if you go through there, everyone’s lined up,” and he replied, “No, I’m going in,” and then I pulled him back.”

Continuing his account, Mr. Pettemeridis stated that “at some point, when there was another large rush and commotion, he ran off on his own again.” That was Solomos Solomou. He pulled on the barbed wire; the UN personnel tried to stop him from getting in, but he got in.”

“When I saw him moving forward and climbing up the mast, I knew right away that all hell was going to break loose,” he said.

“Suddenly, there were a lot of gunshots. You could hear bullets hitting metal because some bullets also struck the mast. There was also a UN soldier next to me who was shot in the buttocks,” he said.

“I fell to the ground; people were trying to get away. For a few seconds, it was chaos from the gunfire. Solomos fell to the ground after the shots were fired,” he noted.

As he said, the United Nations “were afraid to go inside to grab Solomos. Solomos lay on the ground for ten minutes without anyone going to grab him.”

“After ten minutes, the UN personnel went inside, frightened, grabbed Solomos, and brought him out,” he said.

“The smell of blood was very strong because he was bleeding heavily. Medical examiner Marios Matsakis put his hands inside Solomos’s mouth to stop the bleeding, but there was so much blood that no one could determine the extent or location of the wound,” he described.

“Matsakis was trying to find a pulse but couldn’t detect one at that moment. We grabbed him and loaded him into a van to take him outside,” Mr. Pettemeridis concluded, noting that after the gunshots, the crowd retreated and the tension within the dead zone subsided.

Turkey’s Condemnation by the ECHR and the Arrest Warrants That Remain Unenforced

“The sacrifice of Tassos Isaac and Solomos Solomos serves as a constant reminder that freedom is never a given, that the rule of law cannot yield to violence, and that justice must not be allowed to fall into oblivion,” said Nikolas Konstantinidis, President of the Kyrenia Bar Association, to CNA.

“The murders of two unarmed civilians, in full view of the international community, constitute a flagrant violation of the most fundamental human right—the right to life,” he said.  

He noted that “the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled against Turkey in a decision in June 2008, for violations of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) and specifically the right to life.”

As Mr. Konstantinidis stated, “the Court attributed the murders to agents of the Turkish government, a fact that holds Turkey accountable at the international level.”

He noted, however, that “while this international condemnation is an important vindication, it does not mark the end of the journey toward justice. State liability neither replaces nor eliminates the individual criminal liability of the natural persons who committed or participated in these crimes.”  

Mr. Konstantinidis stated that “legality cannot be reconciled with impunity. Otherwise, the perception takes hold that organized violence can, over time, go unpunished,” adding that “such a development would constitute a defeat not only for Cyprus but also for the very fundamental principles of European and international legal culture.”

He also said that “the obligation of state authorities to pursue the prosecution of those responsible for the murders remains intact, regardless of any practical difficulties that may arise”.

As Mr. Konstantinidis noted, the Republic of Cyprus has been issuing national arrest warrants since 1996 and has subsequently issued Red Notices through Interpol.

He noted that, regarding this matter, the then Minister of Justice and Public Order, Marios Hartsoti, had briefed the House of Representatives on this matter in November 2025.

“It appears from that briefing that there are currently eight arrest warrants in effect for the murder of Tassos Isaac, three of which are accompanied by Interpol Red Notices and five by international Wanted Person Diffusions,” noted Mr. Konstantinidis.

Regarding the murder of Solomos Solomos, he said that “five arrest warrants are in effect, with Red Notices having been issued for only two of the suspects.”

“The competent authorities must utilize and exhaust all available legal and other tools for judicial assistance and cooperation to locate and arrest the wanted individuals, including the issuance of European Arrest Warrants,” noted the President of the Kyrenia Bar Association.

As he explained, European Arrest Warrants “are legally binding on all member states of the European Union, unlike Interpol notices, whose enforcement depends on the cooperation of each country.”

He went on to note that “once European Arrest Warrants are issued, the details of the wanted individuals can also be entered into the Schengen Information System (Schengen Information System – SIS) and the authorities of the member states will be required to arrest these individuals and extradite them to the Republic of Cyprus should they attempt to enter or be located within the territory of an EU member state.”

She noted that this “is one of the European Union’s most powerful tools for judicial cooperation, based on the principle of mutual recognition of judicial decisions.”

Ms. Konstantinidis stated that “the sacrifice of Tassos Isaac and Solomos Solomos serves as a constant reminder that freedom comes at a price, that occupation can never be normalized, and that democracy must respond to violence with greater legitimacy.”

In closing, he noted that “the best tribute to the two victims is not merely to preserve their memory. It is the unceasing struggle for the liberation of our homeland, the persistence in seeking justice and holding those responsible to account.”

“It is the ongoing effort for a free Cyprus, free of occupying forces, where human life, dignity, and fundamental human rights are protected without compromise and without exception,” he added.

“Because freedom without justice is fragile. And justice without accountability is a dead letter. Thirty years later, Tassos Isaac and Solomos Solomou continue to remind us that democracy is not measured by its words, but by its determination never to allow impunity to triumph over justice,” he concluded.  

The goal of the Isaac-Solomos Initiative is to preserve memory, says Dr. Yagou

The Isaac-Solomos Memory Initiative was founded in 2008 by an independent group of young people with no ties to any political party, said Initiative member Dr. Kyriakos Yagou.

As he noted, the Initiative’s primary goal is “to preserve the memory of the heroes Tassos Isaac and Solomos Solomos and to highlight to society the messages that stem from their sacrifice—messages such as dignity, justice, and freedom.”

Mr. Yagou noted that the Initiative organizes various events each year, including the large march that takes place before each annual memorial service for the two heroes.

He further explained that the Initiative organizes major marches outside Cyprus at regular intervals. As he noted, in 2016 the “March for Freedom” began in Berlin and, after crossing seven European countries, ended in Cyprus.

He added that in 2021, marking the 25th anniversary of the two heroes’ sacrifice, a major trek took place in Greece.

“We set out from Kastanies in Evros, passed through Alexandroupoli, Thessaloniki, Ioannina, Messolonghi, Athens, and Crete, and ended up in Cyprus,” he said.

As he noted, in recent years the Initiative, in collaboration with local authorities, has been working to have squares or streets named in honor of Tassos Isaac and Solomos Solomos in the areas through which the journey passes.

“This took place in Alexandroupoli and Messolonghi in 2021, and in Kyperounta in 2025. This year, naming ceremonies were held in Zygi, Agios Theodoros, and Mari.”

“During this year’s journey, symbolic naming ceremonies took place in Kerynia, Achaea; Karava, Kythira; and Salamina, Attica. We also made symbolic stops in Rhodes and Kastellorizo,” said Mr. Giagou.

“Mrs. Tasoula, Isaac’s mother, and his daughter, Anastasia, always accompany us. On every journey, we are received by the current President of the Hellenic Republic,” Mr. Yagou concluded, noting that the Greek state is Anastasia’s legal guardian, as she was baptized by the then-Minister of Foreign Affairs of Greece. 

Source: KYPE