Pro-Government Militias
Gladio (Turkey)
Basic Group Information
| Name assigned by coder: | no |
| PGM ID Number: | 429 |
| Country: | Turkey |
| Date formed: | Sept. 27, 1952 |
| Accuracy of date formed: | day |
| Details of Formation: | The Counter-Guerilla started to operate out of the Turkish Armed Forces’ Tactical Mobilization Group (STK) which was founded by brigadier general Karabelen with the consent of the National Defense Supreme Council on Sept. 27, 1952. Karabelen had previously been trained in the USA in special warfare which had involved elements of CIA recruitment (Wikipedia Counter-Guerilla). |
| Date dissolved: | Unknown |
| Accuracy of date dissolved: | day |
| Details of Termination: | Unlike in other countries, Gladio has not been dissolved in Turkey (Wikipedia Operation Gladio), but continues to exist under the name of Special Forces Command (Wikipedia Counter-Guerilla). |
| Termination Type(s): | none |
Former and Successor Group Information
| Predecessor group(s): | none |
| Successor group(s): | none |
| Private Military Company? | no |
| Former Group? | no information |
| Former Armed Group? | no information |
| Former Rebel Group? | no |
| Former Rebel Group UCDP ID: | none |
| PGM Becomes Rebel Group? | no |
| Successor Rebel Group UCDP ID: | none |
Government Relation, Support, and Training
| Government Relation: | unclear (type 1 or 2) |
| Created by the Government?: | no information | Main Creating Government Institution: | none |
| Government Link(s): | state (institution) |
| If link to party, name of party: | |
| Training and Equipment: | yes |
| Shared Information and Joint Operations: | yes |
| Shared Personnel: | yes |
| Type(s) of Material Support: | domestic government; Foreign government |
| State Sponsor(s): | United States |
| Other Connection(s): | NATO |
Group Characteristics
| Membership: | no information |
| Primary Membership: | no information |
| Alternative Primary Membership: | no information |
| Location: | East of Turkey, Ankara, Kolej (Kızılay) |
| Force Strength: | [7000, unknown] |
| Target(s): | foreign military |
| Purpose(s): | protect state, national or religious institutions; protect national borders and integrity; self-defense and security |
Ethnic Characteristics
| Ethnic Target(s): | none |
| Quality of Information for Ethnic Targeting: | not applicable |
| Ethnic Membership: | none |
| Quality of Information for Ethnic Membership: | not applicable |
| Ethnic Purpose: | none |
| Quality of Information for Ethnic Purpose: | not applicable |
Other Information
| Other Information: | The Turkish branch of Gladio is also known as Counter-Guerilla. It is believed to have influenced the military coups of 1971 and 1980. Its existence in Turkey was revealed in 1971 and recognized in 1973 by the Turkish PM (Wikipedia Counter-Guerilla). It belonged to the wider Gladio operation network in Europe whose groups were ultimately answerable to NATO-CIA rather than domestic governments in event of attack by Warsaw Pact. |
New Variables from Meta-Analysis
Purpose
| Purpose: | Gladio was a clandestine stay-behind anti-communist initiative whose founding purpose was to establish a guerilla force capable of countering a possible Soviet invasion. This purpose was soon expanded to subverting communism in Turkey. Since the end of the Soviet Union, Gladio in Turkey is mainly used to fight the PKK (Wikipedia Counter-Guerilla). |
| Relative Benefit(s) of PGM Use | deniability of violence |
Treatment of Civilians
| Treatment of Civilians: | The Counter Guerilla was involved in torture and killings of civilians, in torture centers and during demonstrations. They claimed to be above the law to and entitled to kill. Prosecutors and generals obstructed investigations in unsolved murders and police did not intervene in the shooting of protesters (Wikipedia Counter-Guerilla). |
| Type(s) of Violence against Civilians: | killing; torture |
Reasons for Membership
| PGM Members Coerced? | no information |
| PGM Members Paid? | no information |
| Reasons for Membership: | |
| PGM Members Killed? | no information |
PGM Size
| Size: | When Gladio was named Special Forces Command in 1992, it had more than 7000 members (Wikipedia Counter-Guerilla). |
Weapons and Training
| Weapons and Training: | The founder of the STK had been previously trained in the United States. Together with 15 others trained there they later formed the core of the ÖHD. The STK did not give its officers weapons. During the 1970s the ÖHD received munitions and money from the US, but rejected US-aid from 1973-74 on (Wikipedia Counter-Guerilla). |
Organisation
| Organisation: | Upon founding, Gladio operated out of the Turkish Armed Forces’ Tactical Mobilization Group (STK). In 1967 it was renamed to Special Warfare Department (ÖHD). In the early 1990s it became the Special Forces Command (ÖKK). The STK operated under the authority of the Chief of the General Staff, in the 1970s the ÖHD was headed by Genarl Kemal Yamak. Though the parliament wanted to address the Gladio issue many times since 1990, the deputies of the incumbent party of any given administration always voted in dissent (Wikipedia Counter-Guerilla). |
Reference(s) for Meta-Analysis
Evidence
- Examine the evidence for this coding.