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Militant Islamic Groups Active in Turkey
A glance at militant Islamic groups active in Turkey: A primer from the AP. And yes, Murat, I know they did not include any of the Kurdish terrorist groups, I guess they are on a seperate list: _ Islamic Great Eastern Raiders-Front, or IBDA-C: The group advocates Islamic rule in this predominantly Muslim but officially secular country and is allegedly backed by Iran. The Anatolia news agency said the group claimed responsibility for Thursdayâs deadly attacks on a London-based bank and the British consulate. The IBDA-C also claimed responsibility for deadly Nov. 15 suicide bombings outside two synagogues in Istanbul. Active since the mid-1970âs, the group has become increasingly violent in the last decade and has an estimated 600 followers. The IBDA-C has staged attacks on left-wing and Christian targets. Its leader, Salih Izzet Erdis, also known as Salih Mirzabeyoglu, was captured in 1998. A man calling the Anatolia news agency said that al-Qaida and the IBDA-C, jointly claimed responsibility for todays attacks. Maybe they did, maybe they just wanted credit for them. _ Hezbollah: The Sunni Muslim group is not linked to Lebanon-based Shiite Hezbollah but is also allegedly backed by Iran. It aims to create an Islamic state in Turkeyâs mainly Kurdish regions. The group, which has a few thousand followers, is believed to be behind hundreds of killings of opponents in the region. The leader of the groupâs most militant wing was killed in a shootout in Istanbul in 2000. Turkey allegedly supported Hezbollah when it was formed in the early 1980s, because it fought autonomy-seeking Kurdish rebels. Because the Kurds are not islamic enough or because they wanted autonomy or both? _ Islamic Action: Known for its strong affiliation with Iran, it aims to establish an Islamic state. Its members reportedly received military training in Iran. Authorities believe that the group was behind the killings of a few pro-secular Turkish intellectuals in the early 1990s. _ Beyyiat el-Imam, a little-known group formed in al-Qaida camps in Afghanistan whose name is Arabic for "Allegiance to the Imam," or cleric. The daily newspaper Hurriyet, citing police, reported that six suspects arrested for the Istanbul synagogue attacks were members of this group. The prime suspects in the synagogue blasts. Suspects being "questioned" at length. Posted by: Steve 2003-11-20 |
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