Aram S. Sayiyan
This article presents the history of the creation and the activities of Turkish
special services and groups in the Ottoman Empire from 1919 to1923. After the
war, special groups began to operate in the vilayets not yet occupied by the allies.
Among these groups, the most powerful was Karakol, which existed for almost a
year and a half, and ceased to exist on March 16, 1920, when the Entente troops
occupied Istanbul and arrested the leaders of the organization. The officers of
“Karakol” who remained at large, headed by Lieutenant Colonel Muglalı Mustafa
Bey, formed the “Officers’ Group”, and in February of 1921 he was forced to
change the name of the organization to “Yavuz”. In the end, Mustafa Bey, in order
not to be captured by the British, leaved Istanbul for Ankara and the group ceased
to exist. In addition to these groups, there were other secret organizations in
Istanbul and Anatolia that acted independently.