Salih Omurtak

Salih Omurtak (* 1889 in Thessaloniki ; † June 23, 1954 ) was a Turkish general and last from 1946 to 1949 chief of the general staff ( Genelkurmay Başkanı ).

Life

Omurtak joined the Ottoman army after attending school and was promoted to lieutenant in 1907 after graduating from military school ( Harp Okulu ) . He then attended the Military Academy ( Harp Akademisi ), which he graduated in 1910. In the following years he was used in various army units before he took on a task within the army command in Ankara on January 22, 1920 .

In 1926 he was promoted to major general and took over the post of commander of the VIII.  Army Corps , before he was promoted to lieutenant general in 1930 commander of the IX. Army Corps was. During this time, the Zilan massacre took place in July 1930 , in which several thousand Kurds were killed during the third Ararat uprising in Erciş . Later he was in command of the III. Army corps, before he was promoted to general in 1940 and deputy chief of the general staff.

In 1946 he succeeded Cemil Cahit Toydemir as Commander in Chief of the 1st Army . In this capacity he also became a member of the Supreme Military Council ( Yüksek Askeri Şura Üyeliği ).

On July 29, 1946, General Omurtak succeeded Kâzım Orbay as Chief of the General Staff , while General Nuri Yamut became the new Commander-in-Chief of the 1st Army. He held the position of chief of staff until his leave of absence for health reasons on June 8, 1949. His successor as chief of staff was then the former commander in chief of the 2nd Army , General Nafiz Gürman . Omurtak then formally remained a member of the Supreme Military Council before he was passed into retirement on July 6, 1950 .

After his death, Omurtak was buried in the Turkish State Cemetery ( Devlet Mezarlığı ) in Ankara.

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