Armenian Terror Against Turks And Italian Public Opinion In Italy In The 1970s And 1980s

Abstract

Armenians used terror as an effective tool in their struggle for independence against the Ottoman Empire. It is possible to examine the terrorist activities of Armenians against the Ottoman Empire and later the Republic of Türkiye in three stages. First, the Ottoman Bank raid in Istanbul (August 26, 1896) and assassination against Sultan Abdul Hamit II (July 21, 1905). The second is the Nemesis operations they organized to take revenge against the leaders of the Union and Progress Party, which took the deportation decision in 1915 after the Armistice of Mudros. The third stage is the attacks they launched against Turkish diplomats in different countries of the world in the 1970s.

This article examines the attacks of Armenian terrorist organizations against Turks in Italy. These are the murder of Sait Halim Pasha, the Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Government, which took the deportation decision (6 December 1921), the martyrdom of Türkiye’s Vatican Ambassador Taha Carım, (9 June 1977), the injury of Türkiye's Vatican Ambassador Vecdi Türel (April 17, 1980) and the second secretary of the Turkish Embassy in Rome, Gökberk Ergenekon (October 25, 1981).

In this article, a qualitative research method that is inquisitive, interpretive and strives to understand the problem in its natural environment has been followed. In addition, the places where the assassinations took place were identified and field work was carried out at the assassination sites in Rome.

In our study, in which we used Italian sources, the repercussions of the assassinations in the Italian public opinion were examined. In addition to newspapers with continuity such as Avanti!, Il Messaggero, Corriere della Sera and La Stampa, newspapers published during the period of Armenian terror were also examined. Thus, the attitude of the Italian public towards terrorist acts was followed.

There is no study that would require the approval of the Ethical Committee in this article.

This paper was checked for plagiarism. (https://intihal.net/)

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