1st Edition

Counterterrorism in Turkey Policy Choices and Policy Effects toward the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK)

By Mustafa Unal Copyright 2012
    272 Pages 70 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    268 Pages 70 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    Counterterrorism in Turkey comprehensively analyses Turkey’s counterterrorism policies in the context of the PKK (Kurdistan Workers’ Party), an ethnicity-based guerrilla insurgency group employing terrorism.

    Contrary to most of the counterterrorism studies that focused on single aspect of the phenomenon, this book offers multi-level analyses from a variety of perspectives using both quantitative and qualitative data sets. Examining what measures have been taken so far, and what these policies really mean to the PKK and its sympathisers, Unal examines counterterrorism policies from both the perspective of the government and the PKK. The work evaluates whether policy choices so far have been effective (and in what circumstances) and how they have affected both levels of terrorist violence in Turkey and the nature of this violence.

    This work provides a valuable contribution to the literature on counterterrorism and will be of interest to both practitioners and scholars of terrorism studies, extremism and ethnic conflict.

    1. Introduction: Political Violence and Terrorism in Turkey  2. Counterterrorism in General  3. Methods and Data  4. Examination of the Turkish Counterterrorism Policies  5. Incapacitating PKK Members 6. Analysis of Policies from the PKK's Perspective  7. PKK's Ability to Initiate Violent Incidents  8. Conclusion   

    Biography

    Mustafa Coşar Ünal is a Chief Superintendent within the Intelligence Department of the Turkish National Police.