Imrali
Encyclopedia
İmralı is a small Turkish
island located in the south of the Sea of Marmara
, west of Armutlu-Bozburun peninsula within Bursa Province
. It served from 1999 until 2009 as a maximum-security prison island for its only inmate, Abdullah Öcalan
the leader of the PKK
which has been declared a terrorist organisation (PKK) by the United States of America and the European Union
. In November 2009, several other prisoners were transferred to a newly constructed prison building on the island, where Abdullah Ocalan is also incarcerated.
The island, measuring a length of 8 km in the north-south direction with a width of 3 km, has an area of 9,98 km². The highest peak is Türk Tepesi ("Turkish Hill") at an altitude of 217 m.
With a naval base established on it, the island, the first captured by the Ottomans
, enabled control of the Sea of Marmara, and cut the Byzantines' connection to Bursa. The name of the island is derived from the name of its conqueror Emir Ali, who was one of first Ottoman admirals.
Until the Turkish War of Independence
(1919-1922) three Greek
villages existed on the island. The islanders were engaged mostly in growing grapes, winemaking, silk
production and fishing. One well-known Greek from this island was Kimon Friar
who would emigrate to the United States
and become a scholar and translator of Greek language
poetry
. Following the population exchange between Greece and Turkey
in 1923, the island was mostly uninhabited until 1935, when a semi-open category prison was built. The prisoners were allowed to earn money by working in agriculture and fishing. In 1999, after the capture of Abdullah Öcalan
, the prison's other inmates were sent to other prisons, and it was turned to a category A prison. There is also a military base on the island, and the area around the island is a forbidden zone.
Three politicians were executed on the island in 1961:
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
island located in the south of the Sea of Marmara
Sea of Marmara
The Sea of Marmara , also known as the Sea of Marmora or the Marmara Sea, and in the context of classical antiquity as the Propontis , is the inland sea that connects the Black Sea to the Aegean Sea, thus separating Turkey's Asian and European parts. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Black...
, west of Armutlu-Bozburun peninsula within Bursa Province
Bursa Province
Bursa Province is a province in western Turkey, along the Sea of Marmara. Its adjacent provinces are Balıkesir to the west, Kütahya to the south, Bilecik and Sakarya to the east, Kocaeli to the northeast and Yalova to the north. The province has an area of 11,043 km2 and a population of 3,187,000...
. It served from 1999 until 2009 as a maximum-security prison island for its only inmate, Abdullah Öcalan
Abdullah Öcalan
Abdullah Öcalan , Kurdish founder of the terrorist organization called Kurdistan Workers' Party in 1978.Öcalan was captured in Nairobi and extradited to the Turkish security force, and sentenced to death under Article 125 of the Turkish Penal Code, which concerns the formation of armed gangs...
the leader of the PKK
Kurdistan Workers Party
The Kurdistan Workers' Party , commonly known as PKK, also known as KGK and formerly known as KADEK or KONGRA-GEL , is a Kurdish organization which has since 1984 been fighting an armed struggle against the Turkish state for an autonomous Kurdistan and greater cultural and political rights...
which has been declared a terrorist organisation (PKK) by the United States of America and the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
. In November 2009, several other prisoners were transferred to a newly constructed prison building on the island, where Abdullah Ocalan is also incarcerated.
The island, measuring a length of 8 km in the north-south direction with a width of 3 km, has an area of 9,98 km². The highest peak is Türk Tepesi ("Turkish Hill") at an altitude of 217 m.
With a naval base established on it, the island, the first captured by the Ottomans
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...
, enabled control of the Sea of Marmara, and cut the Byzantines' connection to Bursa. The name of the island is derived from the name of its conqueror Emir Ali, who was one of first Ottoman admirals.
Until the Turkish War of Independence
Turkish War of Independence
The Turkish War of Independence was a war of independence waged by Turkish nationalists against the Allies, after the country was partitioned by the Allies following the Ottoman Empire's defeat in World War I...
(1919-1922) three Greek
Greeks in Turkey
The Greeks in Turkey constitute a population of Greek and Greek-speaking Eastern Orthodox Christians who mostly live in Istanbul, including its district Princes' Islands, as well as on the two islands of the western entrance to the Dardanelles: Imbros and Tenedos .They are the remnants of the...
villages existed on the island. The islanders were engaged mostly in growing grapes, winemaking, silk
Silk
Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The best-known type of silk is obtained from the cocoons of the larvae of the mulberry silkworm Bombyx mori reared in captivity...
production and fishing. One well-known Greek from this island was Kimon Friar
Kimon Friar
Kimon Friar was a Greek-American poet and translator of Greek poetry.-Youth and education:Friar was born in 1911 in Imrali, Ottoman Empire, to an American father and a Greek mother. In 1915, the family moved to the United States and Friar became an American citizen in 1920...
who would emigrate to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and become a scholar and translator of Greek language
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
poetry
Poetry
Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...
. Following the population exchange between Greece and Turkey
Population exchange between Greece and Turkey
The 1923 population exchange between Greece and Turkey was based upon religious identity, and involved the Greek Orthodox citizens of Turkey and the Muslim citizens of Greece...
in 1923, the island was mostly uninhabited until 1935, when a semi-open category prison was built. The prisoners were allowed to earn money by working in agriculture and fishing. In 1999, after the capture of Abdullah Öcalan
Abdullah Öcalan
Abdullah Öcalan , Kurdish founder of the terrorist organization called Kurdistan Workers' Party in 1978.Öcalan was captured in Nairobi and extradited to the Turkish security force, and sentenced to death under Article 125 of the Turkish Penal Code, which concerns the formation of armed gangs...
, the prison's other inmates were sent to other prisons, and it was turned to a category A prison. There is also a military base on the island, and the area around the island is a forbidden zone.
Notable inmates of the prison 1935-present
- Billy Hayes, American writer, who wrote the book Midnight ExpressMidnight Express (book)Midnight Express is a 1977 book by Billy Hayes and William Hoffer about Billy's experience as a young American who was sent to a Turkish prison for trying to smuggle hashish out of Turkey to the US. An adaptation of the book was made into an American film of the same name directed by Alan Parker in...
and the documentor of episode of "Locked Up Abroad-The Real Midnight Express" . Was serving a life sentence for drug trafficking until his escape. - Abdullah ÖcalanAbdullah ÖcalanAbdullah Öcalan , Kurdish founder of the terrorist organization called Kurdistan Workers' Party in 1978.Öcalan was captured in Nairobi and extradited to the Turkish security force, and sentenced to death under Article 125 of the Turkish Penal Code, which concerns the formation of armed gangs...
, founder of the Kurdistan Workers' PartyKurdistan Workers' PartyThe Kurdistan Workers' Party , commonly known as PKK, also known as KGK and formerly known as KADEK or KONGRA-GEL , is a Kurdish organization which has since 1984 been fighting an armed struggle against the Turkish state for an autonomous Kurdistan and greater cultural and political rights...
(PKK). Serving a life sentence for treason since 1999.
Three politicians were executed on the island in 1961:
- Adnan MenderesAdnan MenderesAdnan Menderes was the first democratically elected Turkish Prime Minister between 1950–1960. He was one of the founders of the Democratic Party in 1946, the fourth legal opposition party of Turkey. He was hanged by the military junta after the 1960 coup d'état, along with two other cabinet...
, Prime minister - Fatin Rüştü ZorluFatin Rüstü ZorluFatin Rüştü Zorlu was a Turkish diplomat and politician. He was executed by hanging after the coup d'état in 1960 along with two other politicians.-Biography:...
, Minister of Foreign Affairs - Hasan PolatkanHasan PolatkanHasan Polatkan was a Turkish politician and Minister of Labor and Finance, who was executed by hanging after the coup d'état in 1960 along with two other cabinet members.-Biography:...
, Minister of Finance