In the context of the
Kurdish–Turkish conflict
Kurdish nationalism, Kurdish nationalist uprisings have periodically occurred in Turkey, beginning with the Turkish War of Independence and the consequent transition from the Ottoman Empire to the modern Turkish state and continuing to the pre ...
an itirafçı (, 'defector' or 'confessor') is a former member 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) who worked as an informant or collaborator for the
Turkish security forces against the PKK. Some merely provided intelligence, while others were persuaded or coerced into taking active roles in the conflict. İtirafçıs played a significant role in the conflict in southeastern Turkey in the 1990s, as they were often used to do the extralegal work of security forces, particularly in the case of the unofficial
Turkish Gendarmerie
The Gendarmerie General Command () is the national gendarmerie force of the Republic of Turkey. It is a service branch of the Turkish Ministry of Interior responsible for the maintenance of the public order in areas that fall outside the jurisdi ...
unit
JÄ°TEM
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 intelligence department of ...
.
Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Headquartered in New York City, the group investigates and reports on issues including War crime, war crimes, crim ...
(1999)
VI. VIOLENCE AGAINST JOURNALISTS. Political Killings
/ref> According to figures of the Ministry of Justice
A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice, is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...
, about 1,950 PKK militants became confessors after their arrest.[See th]
article in Haber Vitrin of 9 February 2009
; accessed on 27 September 2010 Unofficial figures put the number of confessors that were used and paid in the fight against the PKK at 500.Abdülkadir Aygan
Abdülkadir Aygan (born Uzunhıdır, Suruç, Şanlıurfa Province, 1958) is a former member of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and of the Turkish Gendarmerie's JITEM intelligence unit. He has been described as "the most well-known among PKK ...
has been described as "the most well-known among PKK members turned informants".['']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 dom ...
'', 28 January 2009
Portrait of a JİTEM hit man: Abdülkadir Aygan
/ref> A confessor was involved in the 2005 Åžemdinli incident
The Åžemdinli incident occurred on 9 November 2005 when a bookshop in Åžemdinli, Hakkari Province, Turkey was attacked with grenades. One person died and several others were injured in the attack on the Umut bookshop. The attack was carried out by ...
.
References
Kurdistan Workers' Party
JÄ°TEM
Turkish words and phrases
Defectors by type
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