Gaffar Okkan facts for kids

Ali Gaffar Okkan (born 1952 – died January 24, 2001) was a brave Turkish police chief. He was sadly killed in an attack in Diyarbakır, a city in southeastern Turkey. He was known for making big positive changes in the city.

Ali Gaffar Okkan's Life

Early Life and Career

Ali Gaffar Okkan was born in 1952 in a town called Hendek, in the Sakarya Province. His family had Georgian roots.

He started his police training on September 30, 1970. He then went to the Police Academy in Ankara. He finished his studies on September 29, 1973.

Okkan began his police career as an Assistant Inspector in Izmir. He worked in many different roles there. In 1983, he became a Superintendent and moved to Şanlıurfa.

He continued to rise through the ranks. In 1985, he became a Chief Superintendent. In 1986, he was assigned to Eskişehir at the General Directorate of Security. By 1992, he was promoted to Assistant Commissioner.

On December 6, 1993, Okkan reached a very high rank: Commissioner. This was the second-highest position in the Turkish police force. He was then sent to be the Police Chief in Kars Province, in eastern Turkey.

His next important job was in Diyarbakır. This area had faced many challenges, including conflicts with groups like the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and Kurdish Hezbollah. Many people had left the area because of these problems.

Making a Difference in Diyarbakır

When Ali Gaffar Okkan arrived in Diyarbakır, he quickly noticed things needed to change. He used his police radio to send a clear message. He said his officers needed to take their duties seriously. This showed everyone he was different from past police chiefs.

One of the first things he did was open up the street in front of the police station. It had been closed for safety. He also removed other security roadblocks in the city. Instead, he put up surveillance cameras in important places. He would watch these cameras from his office at night to help prevent crime.

Before Okkan, many police officers in Diyarbakır preferred to stay inside. Going out on the streets felt too dangerous. But Okkan sent all officers, men and women, out into the city. He asked them, "What are we afraid of?" He told them to be kind and caring to the people of Diyarbakır.

Helping the Community

Under Okkan's leadership, policewomen in Diyarbakır started working in public for the first time. They even directed traffic. He created special patrol teams with two female officers. One team helped find lost children and return them to their parents. The other team helped elderly people who had trouble walking.

Policewomen at the Diyarbakır Airport also helped older travelers. They would assist them with boarding and guide them to the exit. Okkan even convinced the airport to buy wheelchairs for people to use.

The people of Diyarbakır were not used to seeing police officers being so helpful. They thought of police as only having anti-riot vehicles and batons. But Okkan wanted to show the good side of the police. This new approach surprised everyone.

Citizens rarely met previous police chiefs. But they saw Okkan often. They liked him more and more as they got to know him. Soon, Okkan built trust with the people. He made them believe in his goals. His motto was: "We are for the people. I was ordered to protect life, possessions and honor of the citizens. Here, I came for that."

Okkan also supported the local football team, Diyarbakırspor. The team was having a tough time. Okkan was a big fan and went to all their home games. During matches, he acted like the club's president, not the police chief. He cared for the team, hugged the players, and even ran around the field with the club flag after a goal.

Fighting Crime Safely

While Okkan did many social projects, he never forgot his main job: fighting crime. He focused on an illegal group called Kurdish Hezbollah. This group was not connected to the one in Lebanon. They often committed violent acts against their opponents.

On January 17, 2000, the leader of Kurdish Hezbollah, Hüseyin Velioğlu, was killed in a police raid in Istanbul. Okkan played a big part in stopping this group. Hundreds of its members were arrested. Police also found more than 150 bodies of people the group had murdered. Okkan showed that many unsolved killings were done by Hezbollah, not by security forces.

Okkan's friends and colleagues told him to use an armored car for safety. But he refused. He said, "What would the citizens do when I ride an armored car?" A week before he died, he shared a list of 26 Hezbollah hitmen at a press conference. Just 45 minutes before the attack on him, he told a journalist he was not afraid of Hezbollah. He believed the citizens of Diyarbakır would protect him.

Ali Gaffar Okkan's Assassination

On January 24, 2001, Ali Gaffar Okkan left his office for a meeting. Around 5:40 PM, his car and police escort were attacked. This happened less than 1 kilometer from the police headquarters in downtown Diyarbakır.

Unknown attackers opened fire and killed Okkan. Three other police officers died right away. Two more officers died later in the hospital. Four officers were also hurt. The attackers escaped quickly.

The officers who died in the attack were Sabri Gün, Mehmet Sepetçi, Atilla Durmuş, Selahattin Baysoy, and Mehmet Kamalı. The wounded officers were Nuri Bozkurt, Mustafa Dince, Veli Göktepe, and Fatih Gökçek.

Police searched the area and arrested some suspects. No group officially said they were responsible. However, the attack was believed to be done by Hezbollah, as Okkan had received threats from them.

After a special ceremony in Diyarbakır, Okkan's body was taken to his hometown. He was buried in Hendek.

What Happened After

Okkan's death made the people of Diyarbakır very sad. Many people signed a book of condolences at the police headquarters. One person wrote, "For the first time in our life, we witnessed a police chief gave his mobile phone's number. Can you imagine I felt myself also as a police chief, so comfortable when I visited him in his office without any cause?"

The next day, thousands of people, both Turks and Kurds, gathered to protest the killing. They marched and chanted slogans against the attack. They went to the governor's office and had a moment of silence for the police officers who died. Their coffins were covered with the Turkish flag.

Some people later claimed that a secret unit called JİTEM might have been involved in the assassination. They said that JİTEM could operate easily before Okkan arrived. They also noted that Kurdish Hezbollah had not attacked a state official before Okkan's investigations.

The investigation led to two suspects being found guilty in 2010. The court said the attack was planned by professional killers. However, the main planners and their connections abroad could not be found.

Ali Gaffar Okkan's Legacy

After Ali Gaffar Okkan's death, many families in Diyarbakır named their newborn sons Ali Gaffar or Gaffar Okkan. They did this to honor their beloved police chief. In 2011, 101 boys named after him visited his grave in Hendek. They paid their respects with Okkan's wife and daughter. This was part of a project called "Journey of Hearts: Martyr Ali Gaffar Okkan, A Story of Brotherhood."

Many places across Turkey are named after him. These include primary schools in Yüreğir, Adana, Odunpazarı, Eskişehir, and Hendek, Sakarya. There is also a high school in Yenişehir, Diyarbakır, and a police college in Diyarbakır.

Many streets also bear his name, including in Büyükçekmece, Istanbul, Başakşehir, Istanbul, Esentepe, Istanbul, Gölbaşı, Ankara, Buca, Izmir, Ceyhan, Adana, Gürsu, Bursa, Tepebaşı, Eskişehir, Balıkesir, Gebze, Kocaeli, Derince, Kocaeli, Hendek, Sakarya, Turgutlu, Manisa, Atakum, Samsun, Fethiye, Muğla, Çiftlikköy, Yalova, Kars, and Siirt. There is also a neighborhood in Salihli, Manisa named after him.

Public parks with his name are found in Küçükçekmece, Istanbul, and Kartal, Istanbul. A police station in Odunpazarı, Eskişehir, and a sports complex in Kars are also named in his honor.

See also

• List of unsolved murders