//Ed. note: Eyüb Sabri Bey and his companions
spent about a month and a half in Aleppo and
their treatment became so bad that they longed
to go to prison camp in Egypt.//
General Henry J.M. MacAndrew, who arrested
Eyüb Sabri Bey in Antep in January 1919, died
on 16 July 1919 and is buried in Beirut.
Transport to Hamidiye Barracks:
The same day, we were transported in a truck to the
Hamidiye Barracks,
where we were joined by Antepli Batbatzade Nuri,
Diyarbakırlı
Abdülvehhab, his friends Celil and Sabri, Hazireli Hacı Mehmet,
Mardin policeman Hacı Süleyman Efendi, Antakya Gendarmerie
sergeant Yusuf Çavuş
and Major Hüseyin Bey, retired from the Aleppo
garrison. In total there were 16 of us, all hopeless,
sad and having been
forcibly arrested based on slanders. There were no doors or
windows in
the barracks and the weather at that time of year was quite cold,
making
the four days we spent here extremely distressing.
Transport to the even worse Şerebetçi Han:
When we laughed, hearing that “you will stay until
your superiors are
arrested”, the English became even more aggressive toward
us. However,
this increased oppresion
only served to strengthen our resolve and
courage. It was something of a test for us, the way we
looked at it.
Twenty-one days had passed
since our arrival in Aleppo. We were
then
rousted from the Hamidiye Barracks, put into a large cargo truck and
displayed in the markets and neighborhoods of Aleppo. After that,
they took us to the Şerbetçi Han in the Cedide quarter.
All sixteen of us were put into a narrow, windowless
stable. The door
was left open but since
it was a real stable, the smell from the tied-up
animals and their leavings was
horrid and the humidity was terrible, to
boot.
The English were drunk with the victory in the Great War and we
were
subjected to horrific treatment. Every
day, from morning till
evening and even up to eight o’clock at night, thousands
of Armenians,
men and women, would gather across from the stable to shout
insults
and throw rocks at us. This
uncivilized and inhumane situation
continued for another 18 days in the filthy stable. We complained to
the English police
inspectorate there by means of an Armenian
named Zurnacıyan, our
interpreter, but in vain. Finally, we
wrote
a petition:
“We the undersigned prisoners, certain of our
innocence, and trusting
in the word of General McAndrew, we are bearing
up. However, since
the day we were
brought here, thousands of Armenian men and women
have gathered across from us,
harassing us from morning till evening,
as we have suffered their insults and
curses. Although we are being held
in a
stable, we also know that we are also under the influence and
protection of the
English, whose claims of justice and civilization run
counter to the situation
we find ourselves in, which is an insult to
humanity. Consequently, we hope you will accept our
petition and
prevent the attacks being made upon our freedom. Signed, All
Prisoners”
Translator Zurnacıyan introduced us to the police
inspector, who seemed
to have been sent to Aleppo by the English as a stark
contrast to the
elegance and refinement of the city. He was downright ugly, with a
frowning
face. This English police inspector came
as far as the door to
the stable, checked on the animals and then told us that
we would be
taken to a more suitable place in a few days. Nevertheless, as soon as
he left, the
Armenians resumed their gatherings in the morning, at noon
and in the
evening. In fact, sometimes Antebli
Belbeliyan Oseb,
Arakiryan Nazar and Halıcı Huseb and other notables from their
community appeared among the crowd.
arrived and called out
our names: “Accountant Besim Bey”, “Eyüb
Sabri”, “Hüseyin Cemil” and so
on. So all five of us who had stayed
at
Sultani school, along with teacher Sedat Bey and Urfalı
Dişikırıkzâde Halil
Ağa, were told to be ready to move out in half an
hour. We wondered where we
were headed and Sedat Bey guessed
“Egypt”.
The thin Englishman then confirmed this.
We were all
pleased to be leaving the stable and the harassing Armenians
behind,
making even a place of exile more desirable.
When people are thrown together during a calamity, a
bond develops
between them as they eat, drink and sleep in the same place. That day,
in particular, I appreciated this
bond because I had never experienced
such a situation before. I had, of course, bonded with friends during
long ship and train journeys, but this was different. Now, parting
from our other prisoners was
quite difficult and touching. Retired
Major Hüseyin Bey, 80-years-old, was crying all over his white beard,
and
Diyarbakırlı Abdülvehhab Efendi could not hold back his tears
either.
And Hoca Abdullah Efendi cried, too, as he read the
ezân-Muhammedi.
The poor Major Hüseyin
Bey had been arrested merely for being a Turk
living in Aleppo. Without having been questioned on any matter,
he
had been tortured and insulted. He
said to us “My sons, you are going
and be saved from this horrible place. God
willing your future will be
better. Who
knows what these infidels will do to us here henceforth.”
As for those of us leaving, we had worn weary of
this place and felt that
“It’s death or Egypt!” for us because staying here was
worse than death.
We all said our
tearful farewells, as the bewildered English sergeant
looked on. It was a very sad scene indeed. Nevertheless, our fortitude
remained in
place, despite everything we had been through.
Humans
are fickle creatures, always trying to adapt to their
surroundings. But
this stable was worse
than any prison or dungeon, an absolutely
disgusting place and the scene of
many more mysterious murders and
strange events. Many of our co-religionists from Aleppo had
been
jailed there and tortured every night until morning, before being
executed. Even worse was known by the
people of Aleppo themselves.
//END of PART FIVE//
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