İhsan Lâtif Sökmen, also known as Ali İhsan Pasha (1873 – 26 December 1955) was a Turkish soldier and politician who is notable for his participation in

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

Biography

After graduating from the Military Academy in 1895, he took part in the 1897 Greco-Turkish War and the

Balkan Wars The Balkan Wars were two conflicts that took place in the Balkans, Balkan states in 1912 and 1913. In the First Balkan War, the four Balkan states of Kingdom of Greece (Glücksburg), Greece, Kingdom of Serbia, Serbia, Kingdom of Montenegro, M ...

. He served as the Military Attaché in Athens, the Chief of Staff of the

Yemen Yemen, officially the Republic of Yemen, is a country in West Asia. Located in South Arabia, southern Arabia, it borders Saudi Arabia to Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, the north, Oman to Oman–Yemen border, the northeast, the south-eastern part ...

Army Corps, the Commander of the Edremit Division, and the Commander of the Mus Division. When

began Caucasus Front's 9th Corps in carrying out the tasks Sarikamish battle during the Russian army fell prisoners on 22 December 1914, and was exiled to Siberia. He managed to escape from

Siberia Siberia ( ; , ) is an extensive geographical region comprising all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has formed a part of the sovereign territory of Russia and its predecessor states ...

in May 1915 and returned to

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

in September 1915 through

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

, the United States and

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

. He retired in October 1915. He served as Istanbul Şehremaneti Yeniköy Mayor and Pursaklar Inspector. He returned to active duty in 1919. He was appointed as the Head of the Divan-ı War and War Department. In the same year, he was appointed as the Head of

Association for Defence of National Rights Associations for Defence of National Rights () were regional resistance organisations established in the Ottoman Empire between 1918 and 1919 that pledged themselves to the Defence of National Rights movement. They would eventually unite into the ...

, a secret organization, by the Ankara Government. In this capacity, he ensured that weapons and ammunition were sent to

Anatolia Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...

in order to support the

Turkish War of Independence , strength1 = May 1919: 35,000November 1920: 86,000Turkish General Staff, ''Türk İstiklal Harbinde Batı Cephesi'', Edition II, Part 2, Ankara 1999, p. 225August 1922: 271,000Celâl Erikan, Rıdvan Akın: ''Kurtuluş Savaşı tarih ...

. Sökmen was honored with Medal of Independence with Red Stripe for Achievement. After the

, he served as the

İzmir İzmir is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, third most populous city in Turkey, after Istanbul and Ankara. It is on the Aegean Sea, Aegean coast of Anatolia, and is the capital of İzmir Province. In 2024, the city of İzmir had ...

Housing District Manager for a short time, and was appointed to the İzmir Governor's Office in 1924. He was elected as

deputy in the second parliamentary by-elections in 1926. He served as a deputy for Istanbul between 1927 and 1931 and

Giresun Giresun () is a city in the Black Sea Region of northeastern Turkey, about west of the city of Trabzon. It is the seat of Giresun Province and Giresun District.1873 births 1955 deaths Ottoman Army generals Turkish Army generals Ottoman military personnel of the Balkan Wars Ottoman military personnel of World War I Turkish military personnel of the Turkish War of Independence Recipients of the Medal of Independence with Red Ribbon (Turkey)