NICOSIA: U.S. Ambassador Roger Davies was shot during an anti-American demonstration at the Embassy here today [Aug 19], the American Consul said. Other Embassy officials said a Cypriot woman working in the Embassy was also killed, and two more employees were wounded, when Greek-Cypriot demonstrators stormed the seven-storey building in a burst of gunfire, smoke and teargas.

Hundreds of Greek-Cypriots — some armed with machine guns and grenades — stormed the Embassy in an angry protest against what they alleged [was] the American “failure” to prevent the Turkish intervention in Cyprus. A U.S. Embassy official said that Mr Davies was standing in a hallway beside a Greek-Cypriot woman employee when the firing started. The official added that Mr Davies was hit in the chest. — News agencies

[Meanwhile, as reported by news agencies,] Prof. Ghafoor Ahmed, Secretary-General of the UDF, has said the Opposition was satisfied with the work done so far by the Special Committee of the National Assembly with regard to the Qadiani issue. … [H]e said the UDF Action Committee will meet in Lahore in the first week of September to finalise its recommendations on the Qadiani issue.

Published in Dawn, August 20th, 2024