TERRORISTS IN CYPRUS

Press, Volume XCIV, Issue 28159, 24 December 1956, Page 11

TERRORISTS IN CYPRUS

Mountain Gang Broken Up

(Rec. 10 p.m.) NICOSIA, Dec. 22 A terrorist mountain gang in West Cyprus has been broken up. and two of its leaders captured, during a fourdav operation just concluded. The gang leader, George Raftis, and two of his followers were captured in a riverbed. One of his chief lieutenants. Vevagoras Palikarides. was arrested while leading two donkeys carrying food supplies for the terrorists.

The material captured included one bren gun and four full magazines. The operation was carried out north of Paphos by men of No. 50 Medium Royal Artillery and by the Cyprus police. Six Greek Cypriot youths were sentenced in Nicosia today to life imprisonment, having been found guiltv of possessing arms and explosives in the North Cyprus mountains last October. The six youths were captured oy British paratroops on October 4 m an underground hide-out in an isolated farm in the Kyrenia mountain ra were also found guilty oi conspiring to overthrow the Cyprus Government by armed force. The sentenced men include Atnana<=sis Sofocleous. described officially a- leader of the Eoka terrorist mountain gangs in North Cyprus, and Andreas Charalambous—a wanted man with a £5OOO price on his head. All six pleaded not guilty. The number of Cypriots sentenced to Ute imprisonment on terrorist charges under the emergency regulations is n °Mr 2 Justice John, sentencing the six men. said: "A number of your own countrymen are suffering de; ( h in the hands of terrorists and I would be failing in my duty if I = ent ® nc ® j d « f °On hearing' the U sentence, one of the six terrorists laughed m Gour J; The Judge said: "You may ttak this is extremely funny. Person ally, I don’t.”

Singer Discharged From Hospital. Fzio Pinza, aged 64. the singer and actor was discharged yesterday from the Greenwich Hospital cut) where he had been under treatment since a heart attack on pecernber 4. A hospital spokesman said that Mr Pinza’s condition is good, but said that he should recuperate further at his home in nearby Stamford. New York. December 22.