Turkey overhauls provincial police leadership, moving 39 chiefs and 24 officers to central command
Turkey’s Police Department issued a decree on Sept. 18 that replaces the heads of 39 provincial police forces and transfers 24 senior officers to the central organization.
A government decree released on Sept. 18 reorganised Turkey’s police hierarchy, affecting 69 senior posts. Heads of 39 of the nation’s 81 provincial police departments were replaced, while 24 officials were reassigned to the central police organization. Among the transfers, Yılmaz Delen, who previously led Tunceli’s police and was questioned in the 2020 disappearance of university student Gülistan Doku, was moved to the central command.
Former Kahramanmaraş chief Hasan Yiğit, whose tenure followed a school shooting that killed nine students and a teacher, was also reassigned and succeeded by Bingöl chief Beyti Kalaycı. The decree provides no explicit rationale for the personnel shifts, though local media have linked Yiğit’s removal to the school attack.
Why it matters
The reshuffle could signal a broader security strategy and affect ongoing investigations into high-profile cases.
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