Bones of Anzac soldiers surface at Turkish cemetery

ÇANAKKALE - Doğan News Agency

The skulls and leg, arm and chin bones from 97 years ago are seen on the surface of the cemetery. DHA photos

The bones of martyrs buried 97 years ago at Ağadere Hospital Martyrdom Cemetery in the northwestern province of Çanakkale’s Kilitbahir village have risen to the surface, due to the harsh winter conditions.

Residents noticed the skulls, as well as arm, leg and chin bones on the ground while gathering mushrooms, and immediately informed officials.

Natural Protection and National Parks Third Regional Director İsrafil Erdoğan said the bones belonged to soldiers martyred during the Dardanelles War 97 years ago and would be collected and buried again.

The bones are found at a time when the establishment of a Çanakkale 1915 Panorama Museum by a private company is under consideration. Members of nongovernmental organizations in the city recently criticized the establishment of the museum, saying the Ağadere Hospital Martyrdom Cemetery was located in the same place as the proposed museum.

The names of 1,850 soldiers killed in the area, which served as a hospital during the Dardanelles War and was turned into a cemetery when the martyrs were buried there, had previously been determined by Çanakkale Onsekiz Mart University lecturers.