Special Organization (Ottoman Empire)

Special Organization
تشکیلات مخصوصه
*Teşkilât-ı Mahsusa*
Special Organization; تشکیلات مخصوصه; Teşkilât-ı Mahsusa
	Emblem of the Special Organization
Agency overview
Formed	~1913
Dissolved	1920
Jurisdictional structure
Operations jurisdiction	Ottoman Empire
Operational structure
Parent agency	Ministry of War (until 1915); CUP (1915–1920);

The Special Organization (Ottoman Turkish: تشکیلات مخصوصه, romanized: Teşkilât-ı Mahsusa, abbreviated TM) was an intelligence, paramilitary, and secret police organization in the Ottoman Empire known for its key role in the commission of the Armenian genocide.^[1] Originally organized under the Ministry of War, the organization was shifted to answer directly to the ruling party Committee of Union and Progress (CUP) in February 1915.^[2] Led by Bahaeddin Şakir and Nazım Bey and formed in early 1914 of tribesmen (especially Circassians and Kurds) as well as more than 10,000 convicted criminals—offered a chance to redeem themselves if they served the state—as a force independent of the regular army.^[3]

^ Bloxham, Donald (2003). "The Armenian Genocide of 1915–1916: Cumulative Radicalization and the Development of a Destruction Policy". Past & Present. 181 (181): 141–191. doi:10.1093/past/181.1.141. ISSN 0031-2746. JSTOR 3600788.
^ Akçam, Taner (2019). "When Was the Decision to Annihilate the Armenians Taken?". Journal of Genocide Research. 21 (4): 457–480. doi:10.1080/14623528.2019.1630893. S2CID 199042672.
^ Lay summary in: Ronald Grigor Suny (26 May 2015). "Armenian Genocide". 1914-1918-online. International Encyclopedia of the First World War. It was the progenitor of the National Security Service of the Republic of Turkey, which was itself the predecessor of the modern National Intelligence Organization.