The Kurdish mafia () are

organised crime Organized crime is a category of transnational, national, or local group of centralized enterprises run to engage in illegal activity, most commonly for profit. While organized crime is generally thought of as a form of illegal business, some ...

groups run by ethnic

Kurds Kurds (), or the Kurdish people, are an Iranian peoples, Iranic ethnic group from West Asia. They are indigenous to Kurdistan, which is a geographic region spanning southeastern Turkey, northwestern Iran, northern Iraq, and northeastern Syri ...

. Outside of

Kurdistan Kurdistan (, ; ), or Greater Kurdistan, is a roughly defined geo- cultural region in West Asia wherein the Kurds form a prominent majority population and the Kurdish culture, languages, and national identity have historically been based. G ...

, the mafia spread mainly to countries in

Western Asia West Asia (also called Western Asia or Southwest Asia) is the westernmost region of Asia. As defined by most academics, UN bodies and other institutions, the subregion consists of Anatolia, the Arabian Peninsula, Iran, Mesopotamia, the Armenian ...

and

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

, but also to

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

and

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

History

After the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

entered the

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, mobilisation was declared. Central authority was weakened towards the end of the war, leading to an increase in banditry behind the front. Some of the

living in the villages in the mountainous areas of the

Marash Sanjak The Marash Sanjak (, , ), previously known as Sanjak of Ablistan, was a prefecture (sanjak) of the Ottoman Empire, located in modern-day Turkey. The city of Marash was the Sanjak's capital. It had a population of 187,899 in 1914. History Marash ...

, especially in the towns of

Elbistan Elbistan (;Aksüt, Ali"''On the Alevism of Elbistan, Nurhak, Ekinozu and Afsin - Elbistan Nurhak Ekinözü Afşin Aleviliği Üzerine - Zum Alevitentum in Elbistan, Nurhak, Ekinözü und Afşin''"- Alevilik-Bektaşilik Araştırmaları Dergisi 201 ...

and

Pazarcık Pazarcık () is a municipality and district of Kahramanmaraş Province, Turkey. Its area is 1,253 km2, and its population is 70,173 (2022). It is in the southeastern part of the province. The cement plant is a major source of greenhouse ga ...

, formed bandit gangs and put the regional public order in a difficult situation. Towards the end of the First World War, in 1917 and 1918, the activities of bandits brought the commercial and economic life in the sanjak and the towns to a standstill. The Kurdish mafia is led by ethnic Kurds from all over

, sometimes even conducting activities in accordance to tribal tradition, although the majority are from

Turkish Kurdistan Turkish Kurdistan or Northern Kurdistan () is the southeastern part of Turkey where Kurds form the predominant ethnic group. The Kurdish Institute of Paris estimates that there are 20 million Kurds living in Turkey, the majority of them in the ...

. The main source of income for the Kurdish mafia is allegedly

drug A drug is any chemical substance other than a nutrient or an essential dietary ingredient, which, when administered to a living organism, produces a biological effect. Consumption of drugs can be via insufflation (medicine), inhalation, drug i ...

and

arms trafficking Arms trafficking or gunrunning is the illicit trade of contraband small arms, explosives, and ammunition, which constitutes part of a broad range of illegal activities often associated with transnational criminal organizations. The illegal tra ...

, as well as

contract killing Contract killing (also known as murder-for-hire) is a form of murder or assassination in which one party hires another party to kill a targeted person or people. It involves an illegal agreement which includes some form of compensation, moneta ...

. The Kurdish mafia smuggles weapons and hard drugs all across Europe, and

Süleyman Soylu Süleyman Soylu (; born 21 November 1969) is a Turkish politician. He is a deputy chairman of the Justice and Development Party. He previously served as the Minister of Labour and Social Security from November 2015 to August 2016 and the Minis ...

accused them of making over US$1.5 billion per year for the PKK. A British police report revealed that the Tottenham Boys, a Kurdish gang from London, did funnel their profits to the PKK. Kurdish crime families cooperated with each other. Later,

Abdullah Öcalan Abdullah Öcalan ( ; ; born 4 April 1948 or 1949), also known as Apo (short for Abdullah in Turkish; Kurdish for "uncle"), is a founding member of the militant Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). Öcalan was based in Syria from 1979 to 1998. He ...

stated that any PKK member who partook in Kurdish mafia activities was expelled from the group. The Kurdish mafia also patrolled the

Iran–Turkey border The Iran–Turkey border (; ) is in length, and runs from the tripoint with Azerbaijan in the north to the tripoint with Iraq in the south. Description The border starts in the north at the tripoint with Azerbaijan's Nakhchivan Autonomous Re ...

from both sides, and charged Afghan migrants a fee to be smuggled into Turkish cities, including

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

. They did not recognize the Iran–Turkey border and operated without regards to it. Migrants who were smuggled into Turkey recalled how the Kurdish mafia held strong Anti-Turkish beliefs, and wanted to smuggle as many migrants into Turkey as they could. Their hatred for Turkey was a motivation in addition to money, and they cooperated with Iranian criminals to facilitate the migrant smuggling. Afghanistan was a stronghold of the Kurdish mafia. Kurdish criminals smuggled opiates from Afghanistan into Iranian Kurdistan, Iraqi Kurdistan, and Syrian Kurdistan, which they would later smuggle into Turkish Kurdistan, and then transport it to Western Europe or Russia through the

Balkans The Balkans ( , ), corresponding partially with the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throug ...

. In 2015, the Kurdish mafia trafficking of Afghan opiates were disrupted by the unrest in Turkish Kurdistan. Turkish police cracked down on the Kurdish mafia in the process. The

Taliban , leader1_title = Supreme Leader of Afghanistan, Supreme leaders , leader1_name = {{indented plainlist, * Mullah Omar{{Natural Causes{{nbsp(1994–2013) * Akhtar Mansour{{Assassinated (2015–2016) * Hibatullah Akhundzada (2016–present) ...

supplied the Kurdish mafia with opiates in exchange for a tax, and the guarantee that the opiates would not be sold to Kurdish civilians, but to Europeans or Russians only. The Kurdish mafia also paid the PKK a tax to pass through their territory. Despite the Taliban tolerating the opiate trade during their insurgency, they banned it in 2022, as part of their new reforms. The

Albanian mafia Albanian mafia or Albanian organized crime () are the general terms used for criminal organizations based in Albania or composed of ethnic Albanians. Albanian organized crime is active mostly in Europe and South America, but also in various other ...

was previously dominant in the

people smuggling People smuggling (also called human smuggling), under U.S. law, is "the facilitation, transportation, attempted transportation or illegal entry of a person or persons across an international border, in violation of one or more countries' laws, ...

business, although the Kurdish mafia later took over the business, and a few years later, following the refugee crisis after the 2021 Taliban takeover, Afghan criminals dominated the business.

International activity

Sweden

The Kurdish mafia is also active in Sweden, heavily involved in the drug trade but also bombings, assassinations, robberies, and assaults.

France

In late 2022, the Kurdish mafia had several camps in

Calais Calais ( , , traditionally , ) is a French port city in the Pas-de-Calais department, of which it is a subprefecture. Calais is the largest city in Pas-de-Calais. The population of the city proper is 67,544; that of the urban area is 144,6 ...

, which they used to house the migrants they smuggled. One camp housed around 1,500 people, and was described as being extremely dangerous, with a migrant confirming that the Kurdish mafia controlled both the camp and the trafficking route.

USA

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

, during the 1990s and 2000s, Kurdish organised criminals began operating in the city. Their main actions were drug distribution and armed burglaries. Jiyayi Suleyman, who was the first Kurdish officer of the Metro Nashville Police Department, was arrested in 2018 for assisting the gang.

Germany

Kurdish mafia gangs in Germany were also reported to extort German businessmen, making them pay a tax every month in exchange for protection, and even threatening police saying "we outnumber you." German authorities had avoided targeting Kurdish mafia leaders due to fears of streets being filled with Kurdish protestors who will not allow the police to proceed. Some German municipalities even avoided arresting Kurds due to fears of a riot or retaliation.

Notable Kurdish mafioso

Adnan Yıldırım Adnan Yıldırım (1957 – 2 June 1994) was a Turkish businessman of Kurdish descent. Yıldırım was born in Diyarbakır, the son of Selim Yıldırım. On 3 June 1994 together with Savaş Buldan and Hacı Karay, he was abducted by unidentifi ...

Amar Suloev Amar Suloev (January 7, 1976 – June 27, 2016) was an Armenian mixed martial artist. Following his mixed martial arts career, Suloev allegedly became involved in the world of organized crime and was arrested and accused of being a contract killer ...

* Askar Simitko *

Aslan Usoyan Aslan Rashidovich Usoyan ( ka, ასლან რაშიდოვიჩ უსოიანი, ; 27 February 1937 – 16 January 2013), also known as Baba Gurgur and Grandpa Hassan () or just Grandpa (), was a Georgian-born Soviet-Russian crim ...

* Barzan Tilli-Choli *

Baybaşin family The Baybaşin family ( ; , ) is a Kurdish crime syndicate. They were once referred to as "the most dangerous men in Europe" and are particularly noted for having strong family ties. Around 1960, Said Baybaşin formed a family union in hi ...

Abdullah Baybaşin Abdullah Baybaşin (born 1960) is a Kurdish drug trafficker and crime boss, the current head of the Baybaşin family. Following the imprisonment of his brother Hüseyin Baybaşin in 2002, he actively engaged in drug trafficking. He was impriso ...

Hüseyin Baybaşin Hüseyin Baybaşin (born 25 December 1956) is a Kurdish drug baron and crime boss, the former leader of the Baybaşin family. Following his drug trafficking in the 1990s, he made his name internationally. He was a notorious criminal against w ...

** Mehmet Baybaşin **

Tekin Kartal Tekin Kartal (born İlmettin Aytekin, 19904 May 2024) was a Kurdish drug trafficker and gangster. Life Tekin Kartal was born in 1990 in Kulp, Turkey. His birth name is İlmettin Aytekin and his family is of Kurdish origin. In his early 20s, ...

Behçet Cantürk Behçet Cantürk (1950 – 14 January 1994) was a Kurdish drug trafficker. 1970s Behçet's mother, Hatun Demirciyan, was an Armenians in Turkey, Armenian from Lice, Turkey, Lice district. His father was named Reşit. Starting in 1975, Cantürk ...

Hacı Karay Hacı Karay (1950 – June 1994) was a Turkish human rights activist of Kurdish descent. He was born in Yüksekova, Hakkari, to Fehim Karay (father). On 13 February 1993, he participated in the action of closing shops in Yüksekova in support ...

* Halil Ay * Hewa Rahimpur * Lazım Esmaeili * Mahmoud Al-Zein *

Rawa Majid Rawa Majid () (born July 12, 1986), known as the Kurdish Fox (), is an Iranian-born Kurdish-Swedish criminal. Since 2018, he has been a resident of Turkey, but Majid has fled on multiple occasions to Iraqi Kurdistan and Iran. Majid is suspected of ...

Savaş Buldan Savaş Buldan (6 May 1964 – 3 June 1994) was a Kurdish businessman in Turkey. He was arrested by Turkish security forces and was found dead on 4 June 1994. Life Savaş Buldan was born in Yüksekova on 6 May 1964 to Şükrü Buldan (father). H ...

* Zakhariy Kalashov *

Ömer Lütfü Topal Ömer Lütfü Topal, sometimes spelled Lütfi (1942 – July 28, 1996), was a Turkish businessman, who was deeply involved in the Susurluk scandal. He had convictions for drug smuggling, and was dubbed the "casino king" for the gambling ventures ...

References

Notes

Works cited

* {{Refend

mafia "Mafia", as an informal or general term, is often used to describe criminal organizations that bear a strong similarity to the Sicilian Mafia, original Mafia in Sicily, to the Italian-American Mafia, or to other Organized crime in Italy, organiz ...

Organized crime by ethnicity Organized crime groups in Turkey Organised crime groups in Norway Organised crime gangs of London Organised crime groups in Germany Organised crime groups in Austria Organized crime groups in Switzerland