Çelebi is a Kurdish prominent family inhabiting the

Mardin Province Mardin Province (; ; ; ) is a province and metropolitan municipality in Turkey. Its area is 8,780 km2, and its population is 870,374 (2022). The largest city in the province is Kızıltepe, while the capital Mardin is the second largest ci ...

of southeastern

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

Background

They were involved in a long running land dispute with the 1,600-year-old

Syriac Orthodox The Syriac Orthodox Church (), also informally known as the Jacobite Church, is an Oriental Orthodox denomination that originates from the Church of Antioch. The church currently has around 4-5 million followers. The church upholds the Mia ...

Mor Gabriel Monastery Dayro d-Mor Gabriel (; the ''Monastery of Saint Gabriel''), also known as Deyrulumur, is the oldest surviving Syriac Orthodox Church, Syriac Orthodox monastery in the world behind Mor Mattai Monastery in Northern Iraq. The monastery dint take its ...

. They were involved in the 2009 Mardin engagement ceremony massacre. They are known for their closeness to the Turkish state. They are currently allied to the Turkish government in its fight against the insurgency of the

Kurdistan Workers' Party The Kurdistan Workers' Party, or the PKK, isDespite the PKK's 12th Congress announcing plans for total organisational dissolution, the PKK has not yet been dissolved de facto or de jure. a Kurds, Kurdish militant political organization and armed ...

(PKK). Tribe member Süleyman Çelebi was a member of the Motherland Party.

References

Sources

* * * ** The Making of Modern Turkey Kurdish tribes Kurds in Turkey Mardin Province {{Turkey-stub