Salih Zeki Çolak (born 20 July 1954) is a Turkish retired Army general who served as the 49th commander of the

Turkish Land Forces The Turkish Land Forces () 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 foun ...

from 17 August 2015 to 23 August 2017 and commander of the First Army by the Supreme Military Council in 2014, and

chief of staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supportin ...

of the Land Forces.

Biography

Çolak was born in

Akçaabat Akçaabat is a municipality and district of Trabzon Province, Turkey. Its area is 375 km2, and its population is 129,290 (2022). It lies on the Black Sea coast, to the west of the city of Trabzon. Its elevation is . Akçaabat is a coastal tow ...

Trabzon Trabzon, historically known as Trebizond, is a city on the Black Sea coast of northeastern Turkey and the capital of Trabzon Province. The city was founded in 756 BC as "Trapezous" by colonists from Miletus. It was added into the Achaemenid E ...

, Turkey. He obtained his graduation from the

Turkish Military Academy The Turkish Military Academy () or as it is known historically and popularly Harbiye is a four-year co-educational military academy and part of the National Defense University (Turkey), National Defence University. It is located in the cent ...

with ensign rank in 1974 and from the Artillery and Missile School with lieutenant rank in 1975. Before becoming a staff officer and obtaining graduation from the Army War College in 1988, he served at various military positions such as

platoon A platoon is a Military organization, military unit typically composed of two to four squads, Section (military unit), sections, or patrols. Platoon organization varies depending on the country and the Military branch, branch, but a platoon can ...

commander and artillery battery officer. After 1988 he was appointed to the Operations and Training Branch Directorate Command,

battalion commander A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of up to one thousand soldiers. A battalion is commanded by a lieutenant colonel and subdivided into several companies, each typically commanded by a major or a captain. The typical battal ...

in the 49th Infantry Regiment, program officer in the General Staff Financial Planning Program Department, and military representation and the chief of staff in the

Western European Union The Western European Union (WEU; , UEO; , WEU) was the international organisation and military alliance that succeeded the Western Union (alliance) , Western Union (WU) after the 1954 amendment of the 1948 Treaty of Brussels. The WEU implement ...

, Brussels. He also served as head in the 108th Artillery Regiment Command for the Press, Public Relations and Publicity department and

general secretary Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, Power (social and political), power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the org ...

of the General Staff. After Çolak was promoted to the rank of brigadier general in 2001, he served at the Appointment department and 19th Infantry Brigade Command of the Land Forces. With his promotion to the rank of major general in 2005, he was appointed as the head of Personnel department, the General Secretary of the General Staff and was promoted to the rank of Major General in 2005. In this rank, he served as the head of various branches of the Land Forces such as Personnel, the General Staff, the Armored Units School and the Training Division. He was promoted to the rank of

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...

in 2009 and was subsequently appointed as commander of the 7th Corps and chief of staff in 2011. Following by his promotion to the rank of four-star

general A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

in 2013, he was transferred to the Training and Doctrine Command of the Land Forces. Çolak was held hostage at the

Mürted Airfield Command Mürted Airfield Command (, formerly Mürted Air Base, ''Mürted Hava Üssü'' (until 1993), Akıncı Air Base, ''Akıncı Hava Üssü'' (1993-2016), was an air base of the Turkish Air Force located northwest of Ankara, Turkey. During the Jul ...

during the

2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt In the evening of 15 July 2016, a faction within the Turkish Armed Forces, organized as the Peace at Home Council, attempted a coup d'état against state institutions, including the government and president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. They attempted ...

by participants of the

Peace at Home Council The Council for Peace at Home (), alternatively called the Peace Council, claimed to be an executive body that led a coup attempt in Turkey starting on 15 July 2016 and ended on July 16, 2016. The name was made public in a statement read on air ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Çolak, Salih Zeki Living people 1954 births People from Trabzon Commanders of the Turkish Land Forces Commanders of the First Army of Turkey Recipients of Nishan-e-Imtiaz