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İlker Çınar
İlker Çınar (c. 1968–1970) is a former intelligence agent of the Turkish Army, and a suspect and witness in the Ergenekon trials. He was a 'special sergeant' who went undercover with Christian missionaries in Turkey and worked as a priest in Tarsus. He later broke with the Christian missionary world, gaining wide media coverage for his claims that missionaries were supporting separatist movements, and in 2005 published a book, ''Ben Bir Misyonerdim, Şifre Çözüldü'' ("I was a Missionary, The Code is Broken"). Çınar's identity as a military intelligence agent was revealed by ''Bugün'' in June 2008, which showed he had been paid by the Army since 1992. Career Çınar said in 2005 that he had converted to Christianity in 1987. He began his Christian education in 1993, and became head pastor of the International Protestant Church. Hurriyet Daily News, 7 February 2005Spiritual leader alleges death threats/ref> In 2005 he announced that he had re-converted to Islam, and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Turkish Army
The Turkish Land Forces ( tr, Türk Kara Kuvvetleri), or Turkish Army (Turkish: ), is the main branch of the Turkish Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. The army was formed on November 8, 1920, after the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. Significant campaigns since the foundation of the army include suppression of rebellions in southeastern Turkey from the 1920s to the present day, combat in the Korean War, the 1974 Turkish invasion of Cyprus and the current Turkish involvement in the Syrian Civil War, as well as its NATO alliance against the USSR during the Cold War. The army holds the preeminent place within the armed forces. It is customary for the Chief of the General Staff of the Turkish Armed Forces to have been the Commander of the Turkish Land Forces prior to his appointment as Turkey's senior ranking officer. Alongside the other two armed services, the Turkish Army has frequently intervened in Turkish politics, a custom that is now regulated to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ergenekon Trials
The Ergenekon trials were a series of high-profile trials which took place on 2008–2016 in Turkey in which 275 people, including military officers, journalists and opposition lawmakers, all alleged members of Ergenekon, a suspected secularist clandestine organization, were accused of plotting against the Turkish government. The trials resulted in lengthy prison sentences for the majority of the accused. Those sentences were overturned shortly after. Since Istanbul Heavy Penal Court 13 (tr: ''13. İstanbul Ağır Ceza Mahkemesi'') accepted the 2,455-page indictment against 86 defendants in the first case against alleged members of the supposed clandestine organization Ergenekon on 28 July 2008 a further 14 indictments were submitted up until February 2011.Ergenekon'da dav ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tarsus, Mersin
Tarsus (Hittite language, Hittite: 𒋫𒅈𒊭 ; grc, Ταρσός, label=Ancient Greek, Greek ; xcl, Տարսոն, label=Old Armenian, Armenian ; ar, طَرسُوس ) is a historic city in south-central Turkey, inland from the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean. It is part of the Adana-Mersin metropolitan area, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in Turkey with a population of 3 million people. Tarsus forms an administrative district in the eastern part of Mersin Province, Mersin province and lies at the heart of the region. With a history going back over 6,000 years, Tarsus has long been an important stop for traders and a focal point of many civilisations. During the Roman Empire, it was the capital of the province of Cilicia (Roman province), Cilicia. It was the scene of the first meeting between Mark Antony and Cleopatra, and the birthplace of Paul the Apostle, St Paul the Apostle. Tarsus is home to one of Turkey's most famous high schools, the Tarsus American College ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Christian Missionary
A Christian mission is an organized effort for the propagation of the Christian faith. Missions involve sending individuals and groups across boundaries, most commonly geographical boundaries, to carry on evangelism or other activities, such as educational or hospital work. Sometimes individuals are sent and are called missionaries, and historically may have been based in mission stations. When groups are sent, they are often called mission teams and they do mission trips. There are a few different kinds of mission trips: short-term, long-term, relational and those that simply help people in need. Some people choose to dedicate their whole lives to mission. Missionaries preach the Christian faith (and sometimes to administer sacraments), and provide humanitarian aid. Christian doctrines (such as the "Doctrine of Love" professed by many missions) permit the provision of aid without requiring religious conversion. However, Christian missionaries are implicated in the genocide of in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bugün
''Bugün'' ( en, Today) was a Turkish daily newspaper. It was established in 2005. Columnists and journalists working for it have included Cengiz Çandar, Ahmet Almaz, Toktamış Ateş and Kamil Maman. ''Bugün'' was founded in January 2003 as ''Dünden Bugüne Tercüman'', an attempt to resurrect '' Tercüman''. It was renamed in 2005. The paper belonged to the Koza Ipek Holding, a conglomerate considered to belong to the network of followers of the U.S.-based preacher Fethullah Gülen Muhammed Fethullah Gülen (born 27 April 1941) is a Turkish Islamic scholar, preacher, and a one-time opinion leader, as de facto leader of the Gülen movement. Gülen is designated an influential neo-Ottomanist, Anatolian panethnicist, Isl .... During the 2010s, the paper was aligned with the conservative positions of the governing Justice and Development Party (AKP), but after a rift in 2013 it started criticizing the AKP and in 2015 was perceived to suffer pressure as part of the me ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Christianity
Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global population. Its adherents, known as Christians, are estimated to make up a majority of the population in 157 countries and territories, and believe that Jesus is the Son of God, whose coming as the messiah was prophesied in the Hebrew Bible (called the Old Testament in Christianity) and chronicled in the New Testament. Christianity began as a Second Temple Judaic sect in the 1st century Hellenistic Judaism in the Roman province of Judea. Jesus' apostles and their followers spread around the Levant, Europe, Anatolia, Mesopotamia, the South Caucasus, Ancient Carthage, Egypt, and Ethiopia, despite significant initial persecution. It soon attracted gentile God-fearers, which led to a departure from Jewish customs, and, a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Today's Zaman
''Today's Zaman'' (Zaman is Turkish for 'time' or 'age') was an English-language daily newspaper based in Turkey. Established on 17 January 2007, it was the English-language edition of the Turkish daily '' Zaman.'' ''Today's Zaman'' included domestic and international coverage, and regularly published topical supplements. Its contributors included cartoonist Cem Kızıltuğ. On 4 March 2016, a state administrator was appointed to run ''Zaman'' as well as ''Today's Zaman''. Since a series of corruption investigations went public on 17 December 2013 which targeted high ranking government officials, the Turkish government has been putting pressure on media organizations that are critical of it. , the website of ''Today's Zaman'' had not been updated since 5 March, while all archived articles prior to March 2016 were removed. On July 20, 2016, five days after the military coup attempt, ''Today's Zaman'' was shut down after an executive decree by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan R ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
JITEM
Jandarma İstihbarat ve Terörle Mücadele or Jandarma İstihbarat Teşkilatı (abbr. ''JİTEM'' or ''JİT''; English: "Gendarmerie Intelligence and Counter-Terrorism" or "Gendarmerie Intelligence Organization") is the unofficial and illegal intelligence agency of the Turkish Gendarmerie. JİTEM was active in the Kurdish–Turkish conflict. After the Susurluk scandal, former prime ministers Bülent Ecevit and Mesut Yılmaz have confirmed the existence of JİTEM. According to Murat Belge of Istanbul Bilgi University, who has reported that he was tortured in 1971 by its founder, Veli Küçük, JİTEM is an embodiment of the deep state. In other words, it is used by "the Establishment" to enforce alleged national interests. It is also said to be the military wing of Ergenekon, an underground Turkish nationalist organization. In 2008, long-maintained official denials of JİTEM's existence started collapsing in the courts, as ex-members of Turkey's "deep state" security apparatus test ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
TUSHAD
TUSHAD ( tr, Türkiye Ulusal Stratejiler ve Harekât Dairesi, TUSHAD; en, National Strategies and Operations Department of Turkey) was a clandestine organization within the Turkish Armed Forces, including within the General Staff of Turkey. Prosecutors in the Ergenekon trials allege that it was set up in 1993 on instructions from Ergenekon, by then secretary-general of the General Staff Hurşit Tolon. Tolon has denied that TUSHAD ever existed. The General Staff had denied its existence, but documents retrieved from the General Staff in 2013 described TUSHAD, including four reorganisations between 1995 and 2008, and its deactivation in 2008 under pressure from the Ergenekon investigation. Ergenekon suspect İlker Çınar told prosecutors that he had worked for TUSHAD believing it an agency of the state, but now believed it to be the armed wing of the Ergenekon organization. Çınar said TUSHAD had elements within it named the "black", "white" and "orange" forces, that he had bee ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ergenekon (organization)
Ergenekon () was the name given to an alleged clandestine, secular ultra-nationalist organization in Turkey with possible ties to members of the country's military and security forces. The would-be group, named after Ergenekon, a mythical place located in the inaccessible valleys of the Altay Mountains, was accused of terrorism in Turkey. Some believed Ergenekon was part of the " deep state". The existence of the "deep state" was affirmed in Turkish opinion after the Susurluk scandal in 1996. Alleged members had been indicted on charges of plotting to foment unrest, among other things by assassinating intellectuals, politicians, judges, military staff, and religious leaders, with the ultimate goal of toppling the incumbent government. Ergenekon's '' modus operandi'' had been compared to Operation Gladio's Turkish branch, the Counter-Guerrilla. By April 2011, over 500 people had been taken into custody and nearly 300 formally charged with membership in what prosecutors desc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Levent Ersöz
Levent Ersöz (born 19 April 1954) is a former Turkey brigadier general in the Turkish Gendarmerie, who was head of the Gendarmerie's JITEM intelligence department. He was considered a key defendant in the Ergenekon trials, and on 5 August 2013 was sentenced to 22 years and six months. He was released on 11 March 2014. A trial charging Ersöz with the death of Turkish President Turgut Özal in 1993 began in September 2013. Ersöz was found innocent and received an amnesty in March 2016. Prosecutors have accused Ersöz of being behind the 2001 assassination of Diyarbakır Police Chief Gaffar Okkan and a 2006 attack on Faruk Çelik, and of having had a role in the 1993 death of President Turgut Özal. The prosecution has shown a video of Ersöz talking to Bedrettin Dalan in 2004, saying "You are number three. Why don't you go out and talk like you're number one."Today's Zaman, 1 May 2009Dalan was Ergenekon’s number three, says prosecution Police searching Ersöz' home had found n ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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