Terrorism In Turkey Research Articles

SEPARATIST TERRORISM AND THE ECONOMIC CONDITIONS IN SOUTH‐EASTERN TURKEY

This paper investigates the economic roots of separatist terrorism in Turkey. The political conventional wisdom is that poverty in highly Kurdish‐populated, south‐eastern Turkey is one of the most important causes of separatist terrorism and Turkish–Kurdish conflict in Turkey. Therefore, many economic policies have been implemented to improve the economic conditions in the south‐eastern part of the country. Using the Global Terrorism Database and Vector Autoregression (VAR) methodology, I find that there is no causal relationship between economic conditions in south‐eastern Turkey and separatist terrorism. Therefore policy‐makers should be cautious in using economic measures to prevent separatist terrorism in Turkey.

Understanding the Sociostructural Correlates of Terrorism in Turkey

Social disorganization theory was used to frame a test of the sociostructural correlates of terrorism across 81 provinces in Turkey. Zero-inflated negative binomial regression (ZINB) models were used to estimate the relationship between terrorism and poverty, residential mobility, and ethnic heterogeneity. Initial regression models found that measures of poverty and residential mobility were predictive of terrorism. Subsequent models found ethnic heterogeneity was predictive of terrorism, while controlling for the influence of poverty and residential mobility.

FIGHTING TERRORISM: ARE MILITARY MEASURES EFFECTIVE? EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE FROM TURKEY

The present article aims at investigating the causal relationship between defense spending and terrorism in Turkey using the Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) bounds testing procedure and Granger‐causality analysis. The findings reveal that there exists a unidirectional causality running form terrorist attacks to defense spending as expected, but not vice versa. In the light of this finding it can be inferred that military anti‐terrorism measures alone are not sufficient to prevent terrorism.

Political Violence and Terrorism in Turkey, 1976–80: A Retrospective Analysis

During the late 1970s, Turkey experienced a major campaign of political terrorism that was waged by a multiplicity of leftist, ultranationalist, and separatist groups. Between 1976 and 1980, more than 5000 people lost their lives in hundreds of terrorist incidents. The steady escalation of violence amidst a major political and economic crisis undermined the country's fragile democratic system and paved the way for a military coup in September 1980. This study examines the origins and growth of the terrorist movement in Turkey, the main characteristics of political violence, and the causes of the dramatic escalation of terrorism in the late 1970s. The study suggests that although state-sponsored terrorism against Turkey facilitated the rapid proliferation of leftist, rightist, and separatist armed extremist groups, the drift into total terrorism was largely the product of domestic political and social developments.

The New Face of Terrorism in Turkey: Actor Unknown Political Murders

In this study, we have analyzed the temporal and spatial trends in actor unknown political murders in Turkey. A total of 1852 cases, defined as actor unknown political murders, occurred in Turkey between 1975 and 2006, with the peak years being 1980 and 1994. Three different time frames could be defined: 1975-1993, 1994-1999, and 2000-2006. During the first period, cases were common all over Turkey, but during the second and third periods, they were more frequent in metropolitan areas and in the southeast. Incidents occurring during the first period could be attributed to the struggle between right- and left-wing supporters, while most murders occurring during the second and third periods seem to have been related to Kurdish separatism. Although the most crucial factor in preventing actor unknown political murders is a politically stable atmosphere, forensics can also play an important role. Turkey needs to improve its forensic services to bring them in line with international standards, namely the Minnesota Protocol.

Gender and Fear of Terrorism in Turkey

Fear of crime research has highlighted women's differential perceptions and emotions regarding particular offenses—sexual assault, most notably. However, the gendered nature of other crime-specific fears remains understudied. The authors used survey data from high school students in Turkey to examine (a) whether there are gender differences in fear of terrorism, (b) how correlates of terrorism—including media exposure, proterrorism associations, attitudes about terrorism, and demographic and contextual background characteristics—might mediate effects of gender, and (c) whether correlates of terrorism vary by gender. Findings indicated that women were more fearful of terrorism than men and that this difference persisted even after accounting for differences in the measured correlates of media exposure, proterrorism associations, attitudes about terrorism, and demographic and contextual variables. Furthermore, the effects of several of these correlates of fear were significantly different across gender.

REGIONAL UNDERDEVELOPMENT AND TERRORISM: THE CASE OF SOUTH EASTERN TURKEY

This article investigates the possible role of the regional underdevelopment of South Eastern Turkey in the ensuing terrorism in the country. The article also aims at making a contribution towards a better understanding of some economic conditions that are related to terrorism. For this purpose, a novel approach to the examination of the roots of terrorism has been followed. First, we run Principal Components Analysis on total GDP and its components in South Eastern Turkey in order to reduce the number of potential explanatory variables. Second, we use the first three components in a logit regression where the dependent variable consists of an index of terrorist attacks. The results of the analysis have revealed that total GDP is helpful in explaining terrorism in Turkey. Furthermore, we find evidence that agriculture and government services are more important components of GDP in explaining terrorism than factors such as trade, construction, manufacturing and transportation.

From Terrorist to Repentant: Who Is the Victim?

This paper attempts to understand “truth making” conditions of terrorism in Turkey. Focusing on the effects of the Reinstatement into Society law—which is designed for members of illegal armed organizations who might turn into state witnesses—the article analyses the discourses and imagination surrounding the subject of “repentant” and in so doing demonstrates the dialectical relationship between the state discourses and the PKK (Kurdistan Workers Party) counter‐discourses of terrorism. The article argues that both the state and the PKK affirm their sovereignty through their authority over constructing the category of victimhood and hence defining the terms of the conflict.

Turkish Hizballah: A Case Study of Radical Terrorism

The Republic of Turkey is one of the many countries that have been struggling with terrorism for decades. This article concentrates on the development and activities of Turkish Hizballah. Following an overview of the resurgence of radicalism and terrorism in Turkey, the main characteristics of Turkish Hizballah are highlighted and compared to other notorious terrorist groups, KONGRA‐GEL (Kurdistan People's Congress) in Turkey and Hizballah in Lebanon. The ideology, goals, and structure of Turkish Hizballah also are examined. A final analysis focuses on contemporary trends including law enforcement and security operations against Turkish Hizballah, as well as related policy implications.

Terror in Turkey

On 19 December, Turkish authorities announced that they had seized a key suspect in connection with a series of suicide bombings over the previous month. The domestic and international public pressure to produce results and bring the perpetrators of the Istanbul bombings to justice will force the Turkish security apparatus to intensify its operations against radical Islamists. Even if these operations are poorly coordinated and result in the capture of militants close to - rather than actively involved with - those who planned and carried out the attacks, they will nevertheless circumscribe the operational capabilities of any groups planning further attacks by forcing them onto the defensive. Still, this disruption will reduce rather than remove the possibility of Turkey being a venue for further attacks. There is a distinct possibility of further bombings.

Terrorism in Turkey

AbstractOver the past two decades, terrorism has exacted an enormous toll on the Republic of Turkey, a secular democracy with a 99.8% Muslim population. From 1984 to 2000, an estimated 30,000 to 35,000 Turkish citizens were killed by a nearly continuous stream of terrorism-related events. During this period, the Partiya Karekeren Kurdistan (PKK), a Kurdish separatist group (re-named KADEK in 2002), was responsible for the vast majority of terrorism-related events (and casualties), which disproportionately affected the eastern and southeastern regions of Turkey, in which the PKK has focused its activities. Most terrorist attacks over the past two decades have been bombings or shootings that produced <10 casualties per event. From 1984 to 2003, 15 terrorist attacks produced ≥30 casualties (eight shootings, five bombings, and two arsons). The maximum number of casualties produced by any of these events was 93 in the Hotel Madimak arson attack by the Tu r kish Islamic Movement in 1993.This pattern suggests that terrorist attacks in Turkey rarely required more than local systems of emergency medical response, except in rural areas where Emergency Medical Services (EMS) are routinely provided by regional military resources. The last decade has seen the development of several key systems of local emergency response in Turkey, including the establishment of the medical specialty of Emergency Medicine, the establishment of training programs for EMS providers, the spread of a generic, Turkish hospital emergency plan based on the Hospital Emergency Incident Command System, and the spread of advanced training in trauma care modeled after Advanced Trauma Life Support.

Terrorism in Turkey.

Over the past two decades, terrorism has exacted an enormous toll on the Republic of Turkey, a secular democracy with a 99.8% Muslim population. From 1984 to 2000, an estimated 30,000 to 35,000 Turkish citizens were killed by a nearly continuous stream of terrorism-related events. During this period, the Partiya Karekerren Kurdistan (PKK), a Kurdish separatist group (re-named KADEK in 2002), was responsible for the vast majority of terrorism-related events (and casualties), which disproportionately affected the eastern and southeastern regions of Turkey, in which the PKK has focused its activities. Most terrorist attacks over the past two decades have been bombings or shootings that produced < 10 casualties per event. From 1984 to 2003, 15 terrorist attacks produced > or = 30 casualties (eight shootings, five bombings, and two arsons). The maximum number of casualties produced by any of these events was 93 in the Hotel Madimak arson attack by the Turkish Islamic Movement in 1993. This pattern suggests that terrorist attacks in Turkey rarely required more than local systems of emergency medical response, except in rural areas where Emergency Medical Services (EMS) are routinely provided by regional military resources. The last decade has seen the development of several key systems of local emergency response in Turkey, including the establishment of the medical specialty of Emergency Medicine, the establishment of training programs for EMS providers, the spread of a generic, Turkish hospital emergency plan based on the Hospital Emergency Incident Command System, and the spread of advanced training in trauma care modeled after Advanced Trauma Life Support.

Suicide terrorism in Turkey

With the PKK's suicide attacks in Turkey of summer 1999 still fresh in people's minds, Prof. Doğu Ergil draws on the few Turkish‐language accounts about the subject, one only newly‐available, to profile the organisation's approach to suicide terrorism. He does this by examining the culture to which those chosen to be ‘live bombs’ are part of and places all within an analytical framework that draws on a variety of sources as well as his own expertise.

The nature of PKK terrorism in Turkey

This study is undertaken to evaluate the profile of the PKK (Kurdish Workers Party) and Kurdish political behavior separately in an attempt to distinguish the Kurdish issue from terrorism. PKK's profile has changed between 1978, when it was founded and now, depending on Turkey's internal politics as well as the changing international environment. Basically, it started out as a Marxist‐Leninist separatist organization, but by 1990 switched to demanding a federation of Kurds and Turks, and simultaneously bidding for a role in an independent Kurdestan comprising southeastern Turkey and northern Iraq. PKK's only consistent policy is to have remained a Marxist‐Leninist organization so far. The first part of this article addresses the roots, objectives, and methods of the PKK. The second part assesses the problem within Turkey's domestic environment, with a focus on whether PKK truly represents Turkey's Kurds. The third section tries to answer the question of who provides the logistical and financial support fo...

Homosexuality and police terror in Turkey.

Being a way of sexual living as old as human history, homosexuality occupies an interesting place in the life of the Turkish people of the Republic of Turkey. This has been so since the days of the glorious Ottoman Empire. In the year 1987, instead of investigating the roots of homosexuality, the pressing need has become to present a particular view of homosexuality in Turkey today. To be more specific, there is a need to explain the problems of Turkish homosexuals and suggest certain vital solutions. Our country is constantly endeavoring to become "westernized" and it is claimed that steps are being taken toward that modernization. Despite this fact, homosexuals are confronted with such great problems that it is not difficult to justify those who say that there is no democracy in Turkey. I will try to explain these problems with documentary evidence and without exaggeration. In doing so, I shall make use of new material in my book, published under the title of Homosexuality in Turkey: Yesterday, Today. Beginning in March of 1986, we compiled a list of the attitudes of the police toward gays, involving pressure and cruelty that can be qualified as torture. Despite this situation, instead of being more democratic and humane, in April 1987 the police force employed terror tactics against homosexuals in Istanbul. This was "the straw that broke the camel's back." Soon after this act of oppression, 18 gays, acting on our suggestions, sued the police for the first time. They then submitted a petition to the Attorney-General and later launched a hunger strike in Taksim Square. These represent movements of importance in the political history of Turkey. From now on homosexuals, too, will have the right to speak out in political affairs.

Terrorism In Turkey

Terrorism In Turkey

Terror in Turkey

Terror in Turkey