1981 Turkish consulate attack in Paris
Encyclopedia
The 1981 Turkish consulate attack (also known as Van Operation) was an attack on the Turkish
consulate in Paris
, France
on September 24, 1981.
, calling themselves a "suicide squad," took over the consulate killing a Turkish guard, wounding the Turkish Consul
and taking 56 people hostage
, including 8 women and a 3-year-old child.
The consulate, a nine-story building on the Boulevard Haussmann
, not far from the Arc de Triomphe
, was surrounded by dozens of French
policemen a few minutes after it was seized. Sharpshooters took up positions on buildings opposite the consulate, and the area was cordoned off by riot policemen, causing huge traffic jams. Several buildings adjoining the consulate were evacuated.
The gunmen, who said they were members of an organization called the Armenian Secret Army for the Liberation of Armenia (ASALA), threatened to blow up the consulate building and everyone inside if the French police tried to intervene. At the same time, in a statement issued and delivered to the Reuters
Beirut
office during the siege, ASALA's "Suicide Commandos of Yeghia Kechichian" threatened that if Turkey did not release certain "Armenian political prisoners," and if French authorities intervened in the Consulate takeover, all of the hostages would be executed." The Turkish prisoners whose release the militants demanded were said to include two clergymen and five Turkish and five Kurdish
"revolutionary fighters."
The French and Turks knew from experience that they should take the Armenians seriously. Based in Beirut, the Secret Army had claimed at least 136 attacks against Turks in the previous six years, including sixteen killings and scores of bombings in cities like Sydney
, Zurich
and Los Angeles
. The radicals had killed six Turkish officials in Paris
alone, starting with Ambassador Ismael Erez and his chauffeur in 1975. The Armenian group sought to avenge the mass killings of their people by Turks
during World War I
.
Turkey's ambassador to France, Adnan Bulak, refused to negotiate, saying that Turkey holds no Armenian political prisoners. "We will not negotiate with terrorists. That is Turkish Government policy. We perhaps have some Turkish political prisoners of Armenian origin, but there are no Armenian political prisoners." The French Government started talks by telephone and through the consulate's windows. The Turkish guard Cemal Ozen was released about six hours later to a police medical team, but he died shortly afterward in a Paris hospital.
Again and again, a militant appeared at a window to shout demands, holding a grenade in his left-hand, a pistol in his right hand—and shielding himself with a terrified hostage. Eventually, one of the injured militants emerged, flashing a V sign
and shouting, "I demand political refugee status."
Shortly after midnight, the militants' leader started the negotiations that led to the end of the ordeal at about 2 a.m. He was promised by French authorities that the four militants would receive political asylum. "If we had refused asylum," explained Interior Minister Gaston Defferre, "they would have become desperate men." The next day, however, the French Government issued a statement saying that the men would have to stand trial on charges growing out of the assault, including the death of a Turkish guard.
"However sorrowful the historical events that the perpetrators of this act invoked," the French statement said, the takeover "was an inadmissible assault on elementary human rights
and becomes even more intolerable because once again Turkish diplomats assigned to France have been attacked."
of a security guard and the attempted murder
of the vice-consul. The men were also charged with the illegal detention of the 56 hostages and breaking arms laws. Entering the court smiling, the handcuffed defendants all made the victory "V" sign with their hands. Defendant Kevork Guzelian told the court: "Whatever your verdict, our action is already a victory."
The four militants – Vasken Sako Sislian, Kevork Abraham Guzelian, Aram Avedis Basmajian and Agop Abraham Turfanian-Dzhulfayan – were convicted on 31 January 1984 to 7 years in prison (including the years of their stay in detention pending trial). The verdict received large resentment in Turkey.
The international press alleged that the light sentences to four ASALA members charged with the takeover of the Turkish consulate in Paris were a part of a secret deal that French Socialist government
struck with ASALA in January 1982. In exchange, ASALA undertook to conduct no further attacks on French soil, while the French government also granted ASALA the unrestricted use of French airports. Belief in this suspected agreement was further bolstered after Interior Minister Gaston Defferre
called ASALA's cause "just".
Sislyan, Guzelian and Dzhulfayan were released from the Fleury-Mérogis
prison in France on August 5, 1986. The fourth convict – Aram Basmajian – committed suicide
a year earlier.
The Armenians called their attack on the consulate "Operation Van
," after a city in Turkey where, they claim, the Turks killed 200,000 people in 1915.
According to Monte Melkonian
, at that time a member of ASALA who helped to plan and train commandos for the "Van Operation", this so-called "Van Operation" by the "Yeghia Keshishian Suicidal Commando" marked "ASALA's historic peak. It became the greatest single military/propaganda success ever achieved in the history of the diaspora... Summed up, this was a tremendous achievement which created a previously unequalled atmosphere of patriotic enthusiasm and which made ASALA the hope in the eyes of a vast number of Armenians for the realization of our national aspirations."
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
consulate in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
on September 24, 1981.
Takeover
The attack began about 11:30 a.m. when four members of Armenian Secret Army for the Liberation of ArmeniaArmenian Secret Army for the Liberation of Armenia
The Armenian Secret Army for the Liberation of Armenia or ASALA was an Armenian nationalist militant organization, that operated from 1975 to 1986. The group also operated under other names such as The Orly Group and the 3 October Organization...
, calling themselves a "suicide squad," took over the consulate killing a Turkish guard, wounding the Turkish Consul
Consul
Consul was the highest elected office of the Roman Republic and an appointive office under the Empire. The title was also used in other city states and also revived in modern states, notably in the First French Republic...
and taking 56 people hostage
Hostage
A hostage is a person or entity which is held by a captor. The original definition meant that this was handed over by one of two belligerent parties to the other or seized as security for the carrying out of an agreement, or as a preventive measure against certain acts of war...
, including 8 women and a 3-year-old child.
The consulate, a nine-story building on the Boulevard Haussmann
Boulevard Haussmann
Boulevard Haussmann, running from the 8th to the 9th arrondissement,is one of the wide tree-lined boulevards created in Paris during the Second French Empire by Baron Haussmann, with enthusiastic support from Napoleon III....
, not far from the Arc de Triomphe
Arc de Triomphe
-The design:The astylar design is by Jean Chalgrin , in the Neoclassical version of ancient Roman architecture . Major academic sculptors of France are represented in the sculpture of the Arc de Triomphe: Jean-Pierre Cortot; François Rude; Antoine Étex; James Pradier and Philippe Joseph Henri Lemaire...
, was surrounded by dozens of French
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
policemen a few minutes after it was seized. Sharpshooters took up positions on buildings opposite the consulate, and the area was cordoned off by riot policemen, causing huge traffic jams. Several buildings adjoining the consulate were evacuated.
The gunmen, who said they were members of an organization called the Armenian Secret Army for the Liberation of Armenia (ASALA), threatened to blow up the consulate building and everyone inside if the French police tried to intervene. At the same time, in a statement issued and delivered to the Reuters
Reuters
Reuters is a news agency headquartered in New York City. Until 2008 the Reuters news agency formed part of a British independent company, Reuters Group plc, which was also a provider of financial market data...
Beirut
Beirut
Beirut is the capital and largest city of Lebanon, with a population ranging from 1 million to more than 2 million . Located on a peninsula at the midpoint of Lebanon's Mediterranean coastline, it serves as the country's largest and main seaport, and also forms the Beirut Metropolitan...
office during the siege, ASALA's "Suicide Commandos of Yeghia Kechichian" threatened that if Turkey did not release certain "Armenian political prisoners," and if French authorities intervened in the Consulate takeover, all of the hostages would be executed." The Turkish prisoners whose release the militants demanded were said to include two clergymen and five Turkish and five Kurdish
Kurdish people
The Kurdish people, or Kurds , are an Iranian people native to the Middle East, mostly inhabiting a region known as Kurdistan, which includes adjacent parts of Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey...
"revolutionary fighters."
The French and Turks knew from experience that they should take the Armenians seriously. Based in Beirut, the Secret Army had claimed at least 136 attacks against Turks in the previous six years, including sixteen killings and scores of bombings in cities like Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
, Zurich
Zürich
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
and Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
. The radicals had killed six Turkish officials in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
alone, starting with Ambassador Ismael Erez and his chauffeur in 1975. The Armenian group sought to avenge the mass killings of their people by Turks
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
.
Turkey's ambassador to France, Adnan Bulak, refused to negotiate, saying that Turkey holds no Armenian political prisoners. "We will not negotiate with terrorists. That is Turkish Government policy. We perhaps have some Turkish political prisoners of Armenian origin, but there are no Armenian political prisoners." The French Government started talks by telephone and through the consulate's windows. The Turkish guard Cemal Ozen was released about six hours later to a police medical team, but he died shortly afterward in a Paris hospital.
Again and again, a militant appeared at a window to shout demands, holding a grenade in his left-hand, a pistol in his right hand—and shielding himself with a terrified hostage. Eventually, one of the injured militants emerged, flashing a V sign
V sign
The V sign is a hand gesture in which the index and middle fingers are raised and parted, while the other fingers are clenched. It has various meanings, depending on the cultural context and how it is presented...
and shouting, "I demand political refugee status."
Shortly after midnight, the militants' leader started the negotiations that led to the end of the ordeal at about 2 a.m. He was promised by French authorities that the four militants would receive political asylum. "If we had refused asylum," explained Interior Minister Gaston Defferre, "they would have become desperate men." The next day, however, the French Government issued a statement saying that the men would have to stand trial on charges growing out of the assault, including the death of a Turkish guard.
"However sorrowful the historical events that the perpetrators of this act invoked," the French statement said, the takeover "was an inadmissible assault on elementary human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
and becomes even more intolerable because once again Turkish diplomats assigned to France have been attacked."
Charges and trial
The four militants were charged with the murderMurder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
of a security guard and the attempted murder
Attempted murder
Attempted murder is a crime in England and Wales and Northern Ireland.-Today:In English criminal law, attempted murder is the crime of more than merely preparing to commit unlawful killing and at the same time having a specific intention to cause the death of human being under the Queen's Peace...
of the vice-consul. The men were also charged with the illegal detention of the 56 hostages and breaking arms laws. Entering the court smiling, the handcuffed defendants all made the victory "V" sign with their hands. Defendant Kevork Guzelian told the court: "Whatever your verdict, our action is already a victory."
The four militants – Vasken Sako Sislian, Kevork Abraham Guzelian, Aram Avedis Basmajian and Agop Abraham Turfanian-Dzhulfayan – were convicted on 31 January 1984 to 7 years in prison (including the years of their stay in detention pending trial). The verdict received large resentment in Turkey.
The international press alleged that the light sentences to four ASALA members charged with the takeover of the Turkish consulate in Paris were a part of a secret deal that French Socialist government
Socialist Party (France)
The Socialist Party is a social-democratic political party in France and the largest party of the French centre-left. It is one of the two major contemporary political parties in France, along with the center-right Union for a Popular Movement...
struck with ASALA in January 1982. In exchange, ASALA undertook to conduct no further attacks on French soil, while the French government also granted ASALA the unrestricted use of French airports. Belief in this suspected agreement was further bolstered after Interior Minister Gaston Defferre
Gaston Defferre
Gaston Defferre was a French socialist politician.-Biography:Lawyer and member of the French Section of the Workers' International political party, he was a member of the Brutus Network, a Resistance Socialist group during World War II...
called ASALA's cause "just".
Sislyan, Guzelian and Dzhulfayan were released from the Fleury-Mérogis
Fleury-Mérogis
Fleury-Mérogis is a commune in the Essonne department in northern France, in the southern suburbs of Paris. The commune has the Fleury-Mérogis Prison, France's and Europe's largest prison.Inhabitants of Fleury-Mérogis are known as Floriacumois....
prison in France on August 5, 1986. The fourth convict – Aram Basmajian – committed suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
a year earlier.
The Armenians called their attack on the consulate "Operation Van
Van, Turkey
Van is a city in southeastern Turkey and the seat of the Kurdish-majority Van Province, and is located on the eastern shore of Lake Van. The city's official population in 2010 was 367,419, but many estimates put this as much higher with a 1996 estimate stating 500,000 and former Mayor Burhan...
," after a city in Turkey where, they claim, the Turks killed 200,000 people in 1915.
According to Monte Melkonian
Monte Melkonian
Monte Melkonian was a famed Armenian commander during Nagorno-Karabakh war. Melkonian had no prior service record in any country's army before being placed in command of an estimated 4,000 men in the war...
, at that time a member of ASALA who helped to plan and train commandos for the "Van Operation", this so-called "Van Operation" by the "Yeghia Keshishian Suicidal Commando" marked "ASALA's historic peak. It became the greatest single military/propaganda success ever achieved in the history of the diaspora... Summed up, this was a tremendous achievement which created a previously unequalled atmosphere of patriotic enthusiasm and which made ASALA the hope in the eyes of a vast number of Armenians for the realization of our national aspirations."