Christos Kkelis

He was born in the village of Kissonerga¹, Paphos district, on October 17, 1934.

He fell on March 7, 1957 between the villages of Tala² and Kissonerga, in a battle against British soldiers.

Christos Kkelis attended the Kissonerga primary school and worked as an employee in a building materials store in Paphos. He was very courageous and prudent. He joined the struggle in 1955 and was a dominant figure in the Paphos district. As assistant to the Pafos sector commander, he was responsible for guarding the sector's weapons, as well as organizing the groups of all the villages in the lowland area of the Pafos district, except Chlorakas. At the head of these groups, he carried out remarkable actions, such as collecting weapons and bullets from private individuals in his village, manufacturing mines and grenades in large quantities, and attacks against the British.

On 17 November 1955, he blew up a military Land Rover with a mine and on 26 November 1955, he dropped the first bomb on his village, resulting in the death of the first British soldier in the sector.

On 29 November 1955 and 8 January 1956, he led ambushes against the British in Kissonerga. He led a mortar attack on a military camp, between Kissonerga and Pegeia.

On 15 December 1956 and on 20 January 1957 he hit the Stroumpiou camp with three mortar shells. He also attacked Colonel Macmillan, set up an ambush and then attacked with weapons against investigator Windenson.

The losses suffered by the British army were also great from the electric bomb-traps which he placed in trees and detonated from a distance, avoiding the risk of his arrest. Due to the great activity in the area, the military authorities created a military outpost in his village and imposed a nightly house arrest.

Christos Kkelis, using a time mine, managed to hit the soldiers in the center of the village during their night gathering, forcing them to break the siege. To avoid arrest, he did not sleep at home and often stayed with the guerrillas in their shelters.

As heroic as his action was, his death was also heroic. Four days after the death of Afxentiou, he went to the location “Api” together with his fellow fighter Miltiades Stelianou and, after betrayal, they found themselves surrounded by English soldiers accompanied by traitors. The two fighters entered a small room, which housed a water pump, to avoid enemy fire and fought, firing continuously at them. Finally, they were hit with grenades that were thrown at the dirt roof that housed their shelter and they fell on the field of honor, glorious and immortal.