Battles of Gallipoli are battles that were won against the world's strongest armies

Cyprus International University (CIU) published a message for 18th March Gallipoli Victory’s 106th anniversary.

In a written statement published by the CIU Public Relations and Corporate Communications Directorate, it was said that the Battles of Gallipoli were battles that were won against the world’s strongest armies, and is a reference point that raised the morale of the Turkish society.

Stating that the Ottoman Empire fought for 4 years in a number of fronts during the First World War when they allied with Germany, Austria-Macedonia and Bulgaria, it was advised “By  invading Istanbul, the British and French aimed to omit the Ottoman state out of the war, when they crossed the Dardanelles Strait, however, with enormous losses, the Ottoman army did not allow the enemy states to pass through, whether on sea or on land”.

Advising that by the end of the Gallipoli Battles that lasted for one year from January 1915 till February 1916, more than 140 thousand enemy soldiers either died or were wounded, they went on to state, “Among these were soldiers from New Zealand and Australia fighting for the British army. At a guess, this number is about 250,000 for the Ottoman Empire. By not allowing the British-French navy to pass, the Ottoman empire changed the result of the First World War. However, at the same time, this military failure did not mean that they lost the 1st World War”.

In the statement, it was also emphasized that the Çanakkale Wars were essential for Mustafa Kemal making his name known as a result of this battle, who went on to organize the Anatolian Resistance Movement later and lead the War of Independence.