children did. Osman and his men picked the women and girls they wanted from the crowd. They forced all the other Christians into two buildings, which they set on fire. Osman and his men raped the selected women throughout the night, then "butchered" them the next day. Osman's men did the same in nine nearby villages. His activities against the Greeks were so brutal that even Adnan Bey sent a letter to the government in Ankara asking to take measures against Topal Osman. Turkish War of Independence As the mayor of Giresun After the First World War, Topal Osman Ağa continued his operations in the Black Sea region, this time targeting rebellious Christian Pontic Greeks during the Turkish War of Independence. Osman Ağa declared himself mayor of Giresun in order to fight the Pontic paramilitary forces more easily. He wasn't prevented by anybody, as he was believed to be the only one who could protect Turks against these bands. An Association for Defence of National Rights was formed in Giresun. On 27 May 1919, a death sentence issued for Topal Osman by the Ottoman government. He escaped for a while. While Osman Ağa was escaping, he ordered a meeting to be arranged in Giresun to protest the Occupation of İzmir. He met Mustafa Kemal in Havza. Mustafa Kemal ordered Osman Ağa to fight Pontic bands no matter what the Ottoman government orders. The death sentence abolished on 8 July 1919. Osman Ağa's first notable act was tearing apart and walking over the Pontic flag raised by Pontic bands while he was escaping from Ottoman government. He executed the Greek man who raised the Pontic flag, as well as one of his collaborators. He continued his acts by raiding the Greek cinema for insulting Turks inside, attacking Mavridi Mansion to destroy the "Haçika gang", preventing Pontic irregulars coming from various places, including Batum and Ukraine, from entering Giresun. He made Coast Guards more organized to prevent other Pontics to enter. An assassination attempt against him was plotted by pro-Ottoman governor Badi Nedim, but Osman Ağa learned about this plan and had him out from Giresun. Badi Nedim was dismissed on 6 October. Osman Ağa's activities included preventing the citizens from throwing away trash to keep the city clean, forbidding alcohol and prostitution, founding a worker's quarry to help orphans, building better roads and bringing electricity to some parts of the city.