The 1896 Ottoman Bank Takeover was the seizing of the Ottoman Bank in Constantinople , on 26 August 1896 . Bank takeover was planned by members of the ARF . In an effort to raise further awareness and action by the major European powers , 28 armed men and women led primarily by Papken Siuni and Karekin Pastirmaciyan ( Armen Karo ) took over the bank which largely employed European personnel from Great Britain and France . Stirred largely due to the inaction of the European powers in regards to pogroms and massacres instigated by the Sultan Abdul-Hamid II . The ARF members saw its seizure as their best attempt to bring full attention to the massacres
pogroms and massacres
Hamidian massacres
Armenian national liberation movement