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More than 700 dead in total[2] >100,000 displaced.[3]
TheMaoist insurgency in Turkey, referred by the Maoists as thePeople's War (Turkish:Halk savaşı), is an ongoing low-level insurgency in easternTurkey between the Turkish government andMaoist rebels that began in the early 1970s. The insurgency declined in the late 1980s and 1990s and has been sidelined by the largerKurdish–Turkish conflict (1978–2025). Low-level armed attacks continue to be carried out by Maoist insurgent groups, the most significant of which are the Liberation Army of the Workers and Peasants of Turkey (TİKKO) (the armed wing of theCommunist Party of Turkey/Marxist–Leninist) and the People's Liberation Army (HKO) and People's Partisan Forces (PHG), both armed wings of theMaoist Communist Party.
In the late 1980s, the TKP/ML suffered from a series of splits following the party's second congress. In 1993, the TKP/ML attempted unsuccessfully to reunify with theMaoist Communist Party (Turkey)
On 17 May 1985, the TKP/ML broadcast a propaganda message to millions of television viewers inIstanbul, replacing the soundtrack for the evening news.[5]
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TKP/ML's military wing, the Liberation Army of the Workers and Peasants of Turkey (TİKKO), carried out militant and guerrilla actions in the late 1970s and throughout the 1980s, mainly in theTunceli Province, whose inhabitants saw the Maoist guerrilla war as revenge for the repression of theDersim rebellion in 1938.[6] TİKKO reached its height during this period, carrying out guerrilla warfare in the mountainous areas of the Tunceli andBlack Sea regions.[7]
The first clash between the TKP/ML and theGendarmerie took place on January 24, 1973. Gendarmerie units under the command of Fehmi Altınbilek were advancing towards the hamlet of Vartinik, the camp whereİbrahim Kaypakkaya was located. Since the guard they put on had fallen asleep, they were unable to notice the raid on the camp.Ali Haydar woke up first and defended the camp against the Gendarmerie with hishunting rifle, but was shot after firing a single bullet. The others were able to escape because the Gendarmerie was busy with Ali Haydar, but İbrahim Kaypakkaya was shot and wounded in the meantime.[8]
Some of the other conflicts that TIKKO was involved in between the 1970s and 1990s are as follows:
Izmir: On 2–10 September 1980, they showed armed resistance to the police's calls to surrender in the Arapdere area of Izmir.
Diyarbakır: On January 24, 1981, Haydar Aslan and İhsan Parcacı, who were reported by the administrator ofKırmataş village, clashed with thepolice and were killed. As a result, the administrator who reported them to the police was killed by TIKKO militants.
Dersim: The Temporary Winter Camp nearPülümür, where TIKKO's 2nd District Unit was withdrawn, was exposed by the TSK and placed under siege on January 21, 1993. When the guerrilla units learn that the camp is under siege, they place their units on all the mountain tops around the camp. The enemy starts intense bombardment with 3bomber planes and 3Cobra helicopters taken fromErzurum. However, the enemy cannot get close to the guerrilla units, nor can they inflict losses. On the one hand, intense winter conditions and on the other hand, enemy attacks force the guerrilla units to leave the region.
Erzincan: In the evening hours of April 15, 1995, Halil Çakıroğlu, Süheyla Dağdeviren and Munzur Keskin were killed as a result of theTSK's attack with thermal camera weapons against the TIKKO unit that was on the move, around the Tımığı (Yağça) Village ofErzincan Kemah.
Dersim: TKP-ML, which will hold its 3rd Conference at the end of November 1986, together with TIKKO guerrillas, TKP-ML 3rd Conference delegates are in Dersim for the preparations for the conference.TSK, receiving notice that TKP-ML Conference delegates and TIKKO fighters were wandering around the region, began a military operation by building a military buildup in the region. With the tips they received, they intensified their operations in Husun and especially in the Mercanlar region. On November 21, the region was completely surrounded. Realizing the siege, the 3rd Conference delegates try to leave the region. The guerrillas in position do not have enough weapons and ammunition to break the circle. Many of them have Hunting Rifles only. Many TKP/ML militants were killed in the conflicts
In 2000, Turkish security forces launched operations against TİKKO insurgents in the provinces ofTokat andSivas. Discovering 12 hideouts, they recovered nine machine guns, four rocket launchers, grenades, and explosives, as well as 10 tonnes of food and medicine.[9]
On 11 December 2000, TİKKO insurgents open fire on a police special task force, killing two and wounding 12.[10]
In 2001, police captured five insurgents and weapons including two9K111 Fagot anti-tank missiles.[11]
In March 2009, Tamer Bilici, a doctor in service during a 2000 hunger strike in KandıraF-type prison, was "in front of his house punished with death" by MKP-HKO for being apublic enemy because he was blamed for the deaths and permanent disabilities of inmates.[12] In September 2009, MKP-HKO claimed responsibility for the death of a retired colonel, Aytekin İçmez.[13]
Tunceli: On 29 June 2010, two guerrillas of the TİKKO were killed in the mountains ofTunceli by the Turkish state forces.
Tunceli: On 2 February 2011, five guerrillas of TİKKO inTunceli died as a result of an avalanche.[14][15]
Tunceli: On 15 November 2012, 24 guerrillas of HKO were surrounded and captured in Tunceli.[16][17]
Tunceli: On 26 July 2013, the control building of a hydroelectric power plant regulator was bombed in the countryside ofTunceli Province by TİKKO militants.[18]
Tunceli: 14 March 2014, TİKKO guerrillas attacked a police station in Tunceli. TKP/ML declared that the attack was revenge for the death ofBerkin Elvan.[19][20]
Tunceli: On 8 July 2014, TİKKO guerrillas stopped a truck carrying five workers to a base station at Altınyüzük and set the vehicle on fire.[21][22]
Tunceli: On 15 August 2014, TiKKO guerrillas attacked a Gendarmerie Station in Ovacik. No casualties were reported.
In June 2015, MKP-PHG killed former colonel Fehmi Altinbilek.
Tunceli: On 22 July, TİKKO guerrillas attacked a Gendarmerie Station inHozat. No casualties were reported.
Tunceli: 10 October, guerrillas of the PKK and the TKP / ML-TİKKO attacked the military base of Geyiksuyu in the province of Tunceli.[23]
Tunceli: On 15 October, TİKKO guerrillas attacked the military base of Amukta, inHozat county.[24]
Tunceli: On 21 October, three TİKKO guerrillas died in a clash withTSK inOvacık.[25] The funeral of guerrillas was attended by hundreds of people, who sang songs and shouted revolutionary slogans.[26]
Tunceli: 9 May 2016, two TİKKO guerrillas were killed in Geyiksuyu, Tunceli during a clash with TSK Soldiers.
Tunceli: Between 24 and 28 November, 12 guerrillas of TKP/ML TİKKO died during an army operation at Aliboğazı region of the Tunceli province.[27]
Istanbul: On 10 February 2017, TİKKO fighters set fire to the AKP headquarter inPendik district.[28]
Tunceli: On 18 June, MKP-HKO guerrillas attacked the military base of Kuşluca in Tunceli, Halkin Günlüğü claimed the attack killed two soldiers and wounded one.[29]
Tunceli: On 1 August, three MKP-HKO guerrillas were killed in a clash withTSK inOvacık.[30][31]
Tunceli: 18 August, two MKP-HKO guerrillas died when they were surrounded in Hozat by the armed forces.[32][33]
Tunceli: On 26 September, two MKP-HKO guerrillas were killed byTSK soldiers in Ovacık.[34][35][36]
On 16 November, four MKP-HKO guerrillas were killed in clashes with TSK.[citation needed]
Tunceli: On 24 April 2018, two female TİKKO guerrillas were killed and another was captured by TSK Soldiers in.[citation needed]
Tunceli: On 5/6 August, six TİKKO guerrillas were killed by the Turkish Army.[citation needed]
Istanbul: January 15, a group of militants hung a banner in Istanbul reinforced with explosives in honour of other TKP/ML militants who had been killed.[37]
Istanbul: February 4, TIKKO affiliated groups blocked a street in Istanbul with firebombs to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the party's foundation.
Istanbul: Militants attacked the police station in Gulsuyu neighbourhood of Istanbul with a bomb.[37]
The TKP-ML came to be the most influential socialist organisation within Tunceli’s society to the point that they became an organic component of their politico-cultural collective belonging.[38] Individuals supported by ideological descendants of the TKP-ML in Dersim received a third of votes in elections in 2009.[38]
Government of Turkey
Dersim Regional Committee
