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Türkiye marks 108th anniversary of Çanakkale victory

"The victory of Çanakkale is a great and historic epic of heroism, in which the Turkish nation once again declared to the world that it will never give up its independence," Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said in a statement on Saturday.

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Türkiye marks 108th anniversary of Çanakkale victory

GALLIPOLI CAMPAIGN

Tens of thousands of soldiers died in one of the world's most ferocious battles 106 years ago in the Gallipoli campaign in the Ottoman Empire during the World War I.

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Türkiye marks 108th anniversary of Çanakkale victory

The battle took place between April 25, 1915 and Jan. 9, 1916.

Britain and France wanted to secure their ally Russia, as the Gallipoli peninsula provides a sea route to what was then the Russian Empire.

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Türkiye marks 108th anniversary of Çanakkale victory

Their aim was to capture the capital of the Ottoman Empire, Istanbul.

Turks repelled a naval attack, and there were many casualties on both sides during the eight-month offensive.

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Türkiye marks 108th anniversary of Çanakkale victory

When the land campaign also failed, the invading forces withdrew.

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Türkiye marks 108th anniversary of Çanakkale victory

Victory against the Allied forces boosted the morale of the Turkish side, which then went on to wage a war of independence in 1919-1922, and eventually formed a republic in 1923 from the ashes of the old empire.