TNT Road Rage Edition: Loudmouth Stifled by Friend as Police Look On, in Antalya

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 28 February 2022)

"If you don't have something nice to say don't say anything

at all."

In Antalya, police tried to stop a suspicious car with plate number

07 CPU 98 in the Kızılsaray neighborhood, but the driver ignored

the police warning and fled.   Five kilometers ahead, in the Yüksekalan

neighborhood, motorcycle police succeeded in stopping the car and

handcuffed driver Kasım Ö. (48) and his friend Mustafa C. (43). 

However (!), Mustafa C. began screaming at the policemen so Kasım

Ö. had to put his hand over his friend's mouth to silence him, saying

"Shut up! Enough already!"   Police then tested the pair for alcohol

and Kasım Ö. was found to be over the limit.  He was fined about 

6,000 TL (about $400) for "driving under the influence, ignoring a

police warning and creating a danger to traffic".  His vehicle was 

impounded, as well. 

"Beat & Release": Uptight Hubby Batters Wife in Tights, in Istanbul

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 25 February 2022)

uptight prequel click here for a similar incident 

chronicled by TNT.

tighten up but don't you get too tight  good advice.

                             Before, after and uptight anti-tighter. 

In Sultangazi, Istanbul, Zafer Bozkurt (44) attacked his wife Esra (22)

last Sunday because she was wearing tights.  The young woman was

beaten for a number of minutes before neighbors, hearing the 

commotion, called the police.  

Esra hanım, battered and bloody, was taken to Başakşehir Çam ve 

Sakura Hospital, while Zafer bey was arrested.  After 3 days in the

hospital, Esra hanım was discharged and Zafer bey was released by

police on judicial supervision. (!)

Esra hanım had this to say: "I met my husband last year and we got

married.  We have a two-month-old baby.  After the birth, my spouse

began having fits of jealousy and interfered in my clothing choices.

When I put on tights he would start an argument.  The last time, when

he came home from work he began to say some things.  After that, he

went to the market and came back and all of sudden he attacked me.

I don't remember anything.  When I opened my eyes I was in the 

hospital."

Esra hanım noted that during their entire married life Zafer bey had

threatened her and told her that "'I'll kill your mother and father!'  May

women be protected from such bad men."

"Beat & Release": Gun-to-the-Head Was Merely Good Fun, Says 'The Joker'

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 23 February 2022)

             "Sadly, she just doesn't have a sense of humor."

In Kahramanmaraş on 22 July 2020, bank director Turabi K. (50) 

took a gun from a security guard and pointed it at the head of Melis B.

(34), the bank's customer relations expert.  When Melis B. filed a 

police complaint, accompanied by security camera footage, Turabi K.

was fired and a case was filed against him for "threatening with a gun",

a crime that calls for up to 5 years in prison. 

At the 3rd hearing of the case in a Kahramanmaraş court, which 

Turabi K. did not attend, the decision was made to obtain a statement 

from him at his current location so he appeared before a judge in Mersin

to give his statement. 

Once again, Turabi K. asserted that he had not threatened Melis B.

Rather, he said that "the entire incident was a joke.  I don't know why 

Melis B. filed a complaint.  Everyone who worked at our bank branch 

then was surprised about her complaint because it was all just a joke." (!)

However, when asked about claims that right after the incident occurred 

Turabi K. called Melis B. and said "I'm coming to kill you!", Turabi K.

explained that "the reason I called her was to find out why Melis B. 

had reacted the way she did to this joke.  In the course of this phone call,

her older brother asked me a number of times 'are you coming to kill her?' 

The first time he asked this I didn't quite understand what he said and the

word 'Yes' blurted out of my mouth. When he asked this question again,

I said 'No, no.'  In no way did I mean to cause anyone harm."

After Turabi K.'s statement was taken, the court postponed the trial until

certain matters were resolved.     

Turabi K.: "See, I do it to myself all the time. Ha ha ha."

G.O.A.T. (Greatest of All Time) Goat Rescue, in Burdur

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 22 February 2022)

                              The only way out is up.

Seven goats that were stranded on steep rocks in Bucak district of Burdur

province for three days were rescued by volunteer mountaineers over the 

course of an 8-hour operation.   The goats were hoisted 50 meters up 

to safety by means of a rope-elevator system. 

Tuncer Koç, the head of the Antalya Mountaineer and Nature Sports 

Club, explained that "animals grazing in this area generally take to the

rocky promontories when they're frightened by bad weather or 

predators, but they get stuck there.  The lucky ones are rescued but some

fall to their deaths."

                   GOAT rescuers enjoying the view.

Koç had been notified of the goats' predicament by their shepherd. 

After six hours of preparation, the goats were pulled up from their

rocky perch.  Koç said that "we had to keep a close eye on the weather

during the rescue operation.  Taking along some local residents and 

shepherds, we began our work.  We couldn't take the goats downward

because there was a steep decline of between 300-500 meters there. So

we decided to pull them upwards with a rope-elevator system.   We 

brought 3 goats to safety but noticed 4 more that were stuck a bit 

lower down so we rescued them, too."

"Beat & Release": Wife Killer Now Targets "Insulters" on Social Media From His Jail Cell

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Sabah Newspaper, 21 February 2022)

really? click here for TNT report about the murder

of his pregnant wife by Aysal.

"Come over here, dear. It's steeper...uh... I 

mean there's a very nice view from here."

According to late-breaking news, murderer Hakan Aysal (41), who 

pushed his 7-months pregnant wife off a cliff at Kelebekler Valley in 

Fethiye four years ago to collect 400,000 TL in insurance money, is 

still chasing money while in prison.  During the past year, Aysal has 

identified 200 people who have "insulted" him on social media and he 

is demanding 5,000 TL from each of them as a settlement (!). 

Aysal, who is in prison as the appeal of his murder conviction makes

its way through the courts, has had his lawyer Mehmet Buğra Çiçek

identify 200 who have "insulted" Aysal on social media and demand

5,000 TL in compensation from each of them.

Aysal's pursuit of money from prison is enough to make one say

"this is beyond belief!"  Sabah has obtained a copy of the indictment

prepared by the Kandıra public prosecutor about Talha Y. (39) of Konya,

who is one of  Aysal's targets.

On his Facebook page, Talha Y. wrote that people like Aysal "should be

slowly killed by being picked apart day by day.  Otherwise, a life 

sentence is like an award for them."  Aysal took exception to this (!) and

filed a complaint against Talha Y.    In his statement, Talha Y. claimed 

that his Facebook statement was not directly addressed to Aysal,

"if I wanted to do that, I would have written to his own account.  I

wrote what I wrote to protest all the murders of women lately."

Talha Y. refused to settle by arbitration so a suit was filed against him

by Aysal for "insulting by sound, writing or image".  The trial against

Talha Y. will begin in a few days. (!) 

        Aysal's wanderlust confined to his cell these days. 

.

"Winnebago" Snatch and Sting, in Turkish Thrace

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 20 February 2022)

"It was just sitting there on the shore and we thought it 

needed a loving home."

In Erikli village, part of Keşan district in Edirne province, Süleyman

and Kübra Bostancı hooked up a house trailer belonging to Fatih B.

that they found on the shore and pulled it with their own car to their

home in Tekirdağ's Çorlu district.  Noticing that his trailer was missing,

Fatih B. contacted the Gendarmerie.

The Gendarmerie teams in Erikli and Keşan determined that an add had

been placed on the internet, asking 90,000 TL (about $8,000) for Fatih

B.'s trailer so the Gendarmerie posed as an interested buyer when 

contacting the "sellers", the Bostancı couple. 

A final price of 85,000 TL was agreed upon and the "buyers" went to

an industrial park in Çorlu, where they met the Bostancı's and seized

both the trailer and the couple, who were jailed.  The trailer was 

returned to Fatih B. 

TNT Phone Fraud Edition: Professor Duped by High School Dropout

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 18 February 2022)

when it's OK to deny Turkish click here for other

examples of phone frauds that could have been 

avoided with the simple phrase "I don't speak 

Turkish". 

                                Taking teacher to school.

Prof. Nilüfer Narlı, a prominent sociologist and the head of the sociology

department at a university in Istanbul, received a phone call from an 

individual identifying himself as "police officer Ateş" on 4 February.  

The fake policemen recited Prof. Narlı's ID number and the names of her

relatives, as well as her bank account information, and even sent her a 

fake police ID via WhatsApp.  

"Ateş" told Prof. Narlı that her bank accounts had been seized by others

and were being used for some illegal activities.  Consequently, she should

put all her money in just one account, but before that, all of her cash and

jewels had to be recorded.  The fake policeman had Prof. Narlı agree to

the password "barış-pınar" so that their interactions would be secure.  

Prof. Narlı then went to her bank in the Etiler neighborhood of Istanbul,

withdrew all her money and put the cash, along with all her jewelry,

into a bag.  When a "policeman" arrived at her door shortly thereafter and

gave the password "barış-pınar", she handed him the bag.  (!)

The swindler called Prof. Narlı again, saying that another of her accounts

had been identified.  But this time, Prof. Narlı called a lawyer friend,

explained what had happened and realized that she had been duped.

The real police then had Prof. Narlı string along "Ateş" and arrange a 

meeting with him.  Police also determined that the number Prof. Narlı

had been called from was registered to Mustafa Saka, who has a police

record for such frauds.  

Prof. Narlı brought another bag of cash and valuables to a shopping center

in Şişli, where Saka took it and was immediately seized by police.  None

of the cash and valuables that Prof. Narlı had previously given to Saka were

found on his person or in his flat.  Saka denied the accusations but was 

jailed anyway.  Saka's formal education ended in middle school.

"Beat & Release": His Pregnant Wife "Fell" to Her Death & He Reaped Insurance Windfall, in Fethiye

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 16 February 2022)

"Be careful dear, it may be slippery where you're sitting.

It's awful steep there. Let me help you...whoops!"

In Kelebekler (Butterflies) Valley in Muğla's Fethiye district, 7-month's

pregnant Semra Aysal (33) "fell" to her death four years ago.  But her 

husband Hakan Aysal (41) was tried for having pushed Semra hanım 

off the cliff in order to collect 400,000 TL in insurance money. (!) 

Now, a court has given Hakan bey a life jail sentence.  The public

prosecutor made the case that Hakan bey had taken his wife to quite

an odd spot for a pregnant woman to be and made her wait there for

hours.  Hakan bey's assertion that he didn't see his wife fall was found

to be beyond belief, too.  

With regard to the insurance policy, Hakan bey had designated his 

rightful heirs as his beneficiaries but on Semra hanım's policy he 

designated only himself as the beneficiary.  Consequently, the 

prosecutor asked for  a severe lifetime jail sentence for "the intentional

murder of his pregnant wife."  The majority of the court  agreed, 

although the head of the court, Abdulkadir Ungan, thought that 

"the suspect ought to be acquitted." (!) 

"Ambergris" (a.k.a. sperm whale poop and vomit) Seized, With Gloves (?), in Mersin

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 15 February 2022)

                               Handle with extreme care.

In Mersin, police got a tip that "ambergris" had been brought into Turkey

illegally and was being marketed.  A search was conducted in the car

and home of suspect F.A., with 42.750 kilograms of ambergris worth

10 million TL (about $750,000)  found and seized.  F.A. was taken into

custody but released by the public prosecutor. 

Ambergris is used in different sectors and its production is very limited,

being created in the intestines of sperm whales to ease the passage of

sharp and hard objects through the whale's digestive tract.  The whales

expel ambergris as feces or vomit.  (!)

The fragrance (!) sector is the primary user of ambergris, which looks

hard, waxy and rocky to the eye.  Its color may be black or grey.  

Ambergris is flammable and very valuable. 

Info from Wikipedia: 

Ambergris is formed from a secretion of the bile duct in the intestines of the 

sperm whale, and can be found floating on the sea or washed up on 

coastlines.  It is sometimes found in the abdomens of dead sperm whales.

Because the beaks of giant squids have been discovered within lumps of 

ambergris, scientists have theorized that the substance is produced by the 

whale's gastrointestinal tract to ease the passage of hard, sharp objects 

that it may have eaten.  Ambergris is passed like fecal matter.  It is 

speculated that an ambergris mass too large to be passed through the 

intestines is expelled via the mouth, but this remains under debate.

Ambergris is only produced by sperm whales, and only by an estimated 

one percent of them. Ambergris is rare; once expelled by a whale, it often 

floats for years before making landfall. The slim chances of finding ambergris 

and the legal ambiguity involved led perfume makers away from ambergris, 

and led chemists on a quest to find viable alternatives

   Jonah may have been the first human to discover 

ambergris - the hard way.

TNT Valentine's Edition: Nasty Notes on Alimony Payments Burn Ex-Hubby, But Only Slightly

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 14 February 2022)

auto-correct defense click here for another TNT 

alimony report.

How do you fix a broken heart? Get a lawyer and find out.

Teachers Nihal B. and Barış A. married in 2011.  They had no children

together but joined forces to accumulate some wealth, with Nihal B.

making a large contribution to the couple's financial success with her

business and household acumen.  During their marriage, the couple had

a firm with a 2 million TL turnover, two luxury cars, 4 flats in Izmir

and one in Istanbul.  

However (!), after 7 years of marriage,  Nihal B. accused  Barış A. of 

faithlessness, physical and psychological abuse, hiding assets and 

funneling money to his relatives.  She filed a "hostile" divorce suit but 

upon Barış A.'s request, the divorce was then characterized as "arranged 

by agreement".   So Nihal B. relented on her large alimony and 

compensation demands, asking only for the Istanbul flat, a 2016-model

car and a small amount of alimony.  Most of the wealth the couple had

accumulated went to Barış A. 

However (!!), Barış A. could not stomach paying 7,000 TL to Nihal B.

each month in alimony and he couldn't help himself from writing 

"begrudged alimony!" and "damned alimony!" on the checks.  When

Nihal B. saw these remarks she regretted having agreed to the friendly

divorce.  In a petition she stated through her lawyer: "my client has

been damaged psychologically.  The remarks written on the alimony

checks are an insult to my client.  Consequently, we want 250,000 TL

in spiritual compensation."

The court decided that "Barış A., after divorcing Nihal B., remarried 

and he claims that paying alimony deprives his child of sustenance.  

However, since Barış A. openly expressed this dissatisfaction on the

alimony checks, to the effect that his former wife did not deserve the

alimony, he had caused her distress and must pay compensation."

Rather than 250,000 in compensation, though, the court ruled that 

Barış A. must pay Nihal B. 15,000 TL. 

 

                       Send Barış A. to the front!

"Torture & Degradation": Wannabe Mafia Type Exacts Revenge on Romantic Rival, in Bursa

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 13 February 2022)

    Hey, it's a Louis Vuitton! And I'll throw in a handbag.

On Thursday in Bursa, Yaşar Çakıcı (30) and two friends brought 

E.M. (26) to a house, cuffed his hands and bound his feet.  The three

assailants pummeled E.M. with punches and kicks as he lay on the 

ground.  Then, Çakıcı took a revolver from his belt, stuck the barrel

in E.M.'s mouth before making E.M. swallow a bullet. (!)

Not content with this torture, the suspects stripped E.M. naked and

made him wear a woman's dress.  E.M.'s friends informed police of

the situation and the three assailants were taken into custody on

Friday morning.  The cause of the incident turned out to be E.M.'s

and Çakıcı's rivalry for the favors of one Gamze Ü.

Police determined that Çakıcı had changed his surname from 

"Eskici" in 2019 and they scrubbed his telephone and social media

accounts.  From this research, police learned that Çakıcı and 

friends Bekir T. and Gökhan Y. had tortured an individual named

M.Ş.  Police also found a video on social media of Çakıcı touring

the city with a  long-barrel weapon in his hands.

A woman named Ç.A. also filed a complaint against Çakıcı the day

before yesterday, saying in her statement that Çakıcı had told her 

that he was the nephew of Alaatin Çakıcı (a notorious Turkish 

gangster - evidently the reason for the name-change) and that he 

borrowed money from her a number of times.  When Ç.A.

demanded repayment, Çakıcı threatened her.

 

                             Role model Alaattin Çakıcı.

"Beat & Release": He's Given Another Chance to Sexually Harass Youngsters, in Armutlu

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 12 February 2022)

                             "Want some phone candy?"

In Yalova's Armutlu district, Yakup Akkaya (33), a worker at the

municipal sports center, was arrested on 17 August last year for

sexually harassing a boy named E.N. (16) and a girl named P.Ç. (20),

who came to the sports center, by phone.  Akkaya was charged with

"sexual harassment by phone" and spent two months in jail.

In October, Akkaya was released pending trial and returned to his

job at the Armutlu Municipal Sports Center.  However (!), in early

February, Akkaya was taken into custody for sexually harassing 

a boy named Ş.M.A (17) at the facility, again via telephone.  An

examination of the phone messages revealed that Akkaya had both

sexually harassed Ş.M.A. and tried to blackmail him into 

prostitution. 

Akkaya was again jailed in prison in Bursa but another investigation

was opened to determine whether or not he had sexually harassed

other youngsters, by examining his cellphone.  

Akkaya's boss at the sports center, Atalay Bestaş of the Armutlu

municipal company Arjemek, noted that "he hadn't been convicted

of any crime (!) so we brought him back to work.  Since he's been

arrested again, he was fired on 7 February. We're waiting for the 

results of his trial."

"Beat & Release": No Good Deed Goes Unpunished, in Eskişehir

türkçe links to original Turkish article

(Hürriyet Newspaper, 10 February 2022)

Jailed for saving two women's lives. What's wrong with this

picture?

Last Saturday evening in Eskişehir, Afghani Abdulkadir Ahmadi (62)

was stabbing his wife Shannaz Nazari and his daughter Nasimgül

Ahmadi in the middle of the street.  Hearing the women's screams,

Tolga Daşkıran (19) and Hüseyin Şahin (17) intervened.  Şahin threw

Ahmadi to the ground but was stabbed in his ankle by Ahmadi.  In

the course of the tussle, Daşkıran stabbed Ahmadi.

Shannaz Ahmadi was taken to intensive care for treatment of wounds

on her arm and her midsection, as was Ahmadi for a stab wound in 

his back.  On Sunday, Daşkıran was arrested but explained that he was

only intervening to save the women's lives.  Nevertheless, Daşkıran was 

jailed in this incident, which called to mind a similar "Good Samaritan"

case involving one Kadir Şeker in Konya a year ago.  

But good news came last night when Daşkıran was released from jail.

He will be tried without incarceration, on condition that he not leave

the country.  Daşkıran's mother Nazire Kurt met him at the prison gate

with tears in her eyes.  

Daşkıran explained that "my aim was to save a woman's life. No one

would want what happened to happen but everyone else was just 

watching (Ahmedi stab his wife and daughter), so my friend and I 

decided to intervene. I'm pleased with the decision of the Turkish 

justice system to release me."

His mother Nazire hanım said that "I'm very happy.  May God prevent

anyone from going through such an experience.  My son did something

to be proud of - he fought for a woman's life and hopefully she will

recover.  My son did what he had to do."

                                             Pretzel logic.

TNT History Archives: Ottoman-German 9 January 1917 Artillery Attack on Meis Island

 

The Greek island of Meis (Kastelorizo/Megisti) was armed and used 

by English forces in World War I to threaten the nearby Turkish 

Mediterranean coast and for staging airplane carriers.  But a surprise 

artillery attack by a combined Ottoman-German shore battery sunk 

the HMS Ben-my-Chree airplane carrier and damaged other English 

ships in the Meis Island port on 9 January 1917. 

In his memoir “Five Years in Turkey”, German General Liman von 

Sanders made mention of this artillery attack and lauded the efforts 

of three German officers, in particular, taking little or no note of the 

Turkish participation.  In the April-May 1941 issue of Yeni Türk 

magazine, İskender F. Sertelli gave the Turkish perspective, quoting 

a Turkish officer who was involved in the attack.  A Turkish corporal 

named “Hızır” was singled out for his remarkable contributions to 

the success of the mission.  Herewith, the English translation of 

Sertelli’s article.  

//begin translation//

 

We are indebted to Corporal Cafer ((henceforth identified as “Hızır”, 

which may have been his nickname – someone who saves the day at 

the last moment is often referred to in Turkish as “Hızır”))  for the 

victory achieved on 9 January 1917 at Meis Island because the enemy 

airplane carrier was sunk by the first cannonball he fired.

In this story of mine I will talk about the important raid launched against 

Meis Island on 9 January 1917.  My friend the late Mr. Celâl, a Trabzon 

police chief who served with distinction in the War of Independence, told 

me about it.  Celâl was also a reserve officer in the Great War and I heard 

about the event directly from his lips. 

But first, let us hear a bit about it from a more official and authoritative 

source, namely General Liman von Sanders, who was the commander at 

Çanakkale and who wrote about the incident in his memoir “Five Years 

in Turkey”:

“The decision was made to launch an artillery raid on the port at Meis 

Island in the Mediterranean Sea.  English detachments had occupied the 

island and outfitted it with cannon, radio and telegraph stations and other 

equipment.  Meis Island was thereby established as a good spot and base 

of operations for the English to launch various operations against the 

Turkish coast. 

We made preparations over the course of four weeks.  An “obüs” 

((howitzer)) and a mountain battery were brought from Baladiz, the 

railroad station nearest to the Anatolian coast, over initially good roads 

and then over roadless high mountain paths, to the rocky point opposite 

Meis Island.  

Baladiz is today’s Gümüşgün in Isparta province.  Meis 

Island is just opposite Kaş.

A few hundred laborers were needed to get the guns through the 

approximately 50-kilometer goat and donkey road by widening the road 

from about three meters in width, over the course of a month.  In this 

way, and with great difficulty, the guns were brought to the coast.  The 

mountain range crossed was 1,500 meters high and the rocky point on 

the coast was 220 meters high. 

On 6 January, our guns were set up at a distance of 5,000 meters from the 

Meis Island port.   Our ammunition was brought by means of 400 camels 

and the enemy was unaware of our activities, which had continued for four 

months. 

On 9 January, our guns were readied for firing.  A warship that was first 

thought to be a cruiser, but which was later determined to be an English 

airplane carrier painted grey was seen from afar in the port.  This ship was 

anchored at the mouth of the port without any attendant precautions.  On 

that day at about one-thirty o’clock, our hidden batteries began to open fire.  

After sustaining a few hits, the large warship began to catch fire and the 

airplane carrier was no longer able to use its cannon.  Soon the ship’s 

ammunition exploded and the vessel began taking on water.  On the 

morning of 10 January, it could be seen that the ship’s two smokestacks 

had been broken up from the rear, the front of the ship was almost 

completely submerged and the vessel lay ruined in its anchorage.

In addition, two torpedo boats under steam and an armed commercial ship 

suffered many hits but were able to escape, albeit in flames.  The radio-

telegraph stations on the island were also destroyed by the Turkish 

batteries.  Meanwhile, the enemy batteries on the island were abandoned 

so the enemy  was henceforth unable to make any sort of counterattack,

toward the Turkish shore.

The honor associated with this successful firing that has taken an 

important place in war history, belongs to three people: first, German 

Cavalry Capt. Schuler, secondly, First Lt. Hesel Berger, and thirdly, 

artillery commander Major Schmit Kolbov.”

                  HMS Ben-my-Chree airplane carrier

Now let us hear about the event from the lips of one of our valued officers 

who participated in it, Capt. Celâl, a Trabzon police chief who died 

recently:

“We worked day and night in high and desolate places where man has 

rarely tread with our soldiers for a month to open a road for the guns to 

pass through.  We would work for 20 hours and then catch a few hours 

sleep during the day.  The job of making a way for the guns was done 

completely by Turkish soldiers and the enemy was none the wiser.   

Commanding us was a German major (Major Schmit Kolbov, so highly 

praised by Gen. Liman von Sanders).  But this major only knew how to 

give orders and, in fact, the other German officers would make fun of 

his officious remarks.  

If Corporal Hızır had not been among our 300-man group of self-

sacrificing soldiers, it would have been impossible for us to traverse 

1,500-meter high mountains and then descend to the rocky point on the 

shore.  Because after climbing 300 meters, the goat path ended and the 

steep rocky terrain began.  Let alone getting the “obüs” across these rocks, 

it was nearly impossible for us to get by with the light loads we carried 

on our backs. 

Cpl. Hızır went up to the top of the mountain by himself and discovered 

paths we could take down to the point on the coast.  To appreciate what 

Hızır did one must see the wild panorama, untouched by human feet, for 

himself.  After Hızır discovered this path he became known as the 

‘commander in sandals’ and even Major Schmit would address him this 

way in Turkish.  Hızır’s exploits did not end here.  After we reached the 

point on the coast, he admonished us in this way: “we will work at night.  

If we work during the day they will be able to spot us with binoculars.”  

On the other hand, the German officers with us claimed that it wasn’t 

possible to see us with binoculars from the island.  But Hızır countered 

that ‘I once spent a night in a ferry in the Meis Island port and the ferry 

captain said that he could see the eagles on this shore from there with 

binoculars.’  In short, Hızır was a very capable fellow.  If he hadn’t been 

with us the enemy would have discovered us before we were able to set 

up our batteries and everything we’d done would have gone for naught.

But there was yet another danger for us on the spot where we placed the 

“obüs”.   We didn’t know what would happen to us after our artillery 

attack.  Perhaps enemy airplanes would attack, find our position and 

destroy us.  Nevertheless, we had no choice but to remain in our position 

until our last preparations had been  completed.  Yet, there were snakes 

all around us and the German officers took to the tree branches like birds 

to escape them and wouldn’t come down.  Hızır took matters into his own 

hands, literally, by fearlessly grabbing the snakes and throwing them into 

the sea.  In this way, we were able to set up our “obüs” in 24 hours, with 

the threat of the snakes being ameliorated to some degree.  

Hızır’s third success was his most important one.  He never flagged 

while carrying the cannon balls to the artillerymen for the artillery 

barrage, outdoing everyone else in this regard.  There was an “obüs” 

officer of ours named Bekir Efendi.  During the firing, Hızır was the first 

to notice a mistake that a sergeant had unknowingly made.  He jumped in 

front of artillery officer Bekir and turned him back toward the gunpowder 

depot, preventing an awful accident.  With tears in his eyes, Bekir Efendi 

said to Hızır  “you didn’t just save me, he saved my cannon, too.  If there 

had been an explosion near the cannon how would we have brought 

another cannon here?”, and kissed him on the forehead.  Shortly thereafter, 

the German artillery commander realized the danger of the averted 

accident, exhibited his concern as his face turned white, and repeatedly 

shook Hızır’s hand.  

That day, Hızır saved our cannon and all of us, as well.   If Hızır were to 

engage in a bayonet fight on the battlefield he would no doubt fell five 

enemy soldiers before falling himself on the sixth try.  He was an 

extraordinary man – unselfish, brave, intelligent and possessing long-range 

vision, in particular.  In this incident, he was tremendously beneficial and 

heroic.  In fact, in the words of his Turkish commanders, he made miracles.   

It would be a great injustice to deny Hızır a large portion of the honor 

associated with the Meis Island success of 9 January 1917, because the 

enemy airplane carrier began to explode with the first cannonball he fired.”

//end translation//