Turkey Military Taps Chief of Staff
Suzan Fraser, The Associated Press, ANKARA, Turkey (AP) - The ground forces commander in NATO-member Turkey was named chief of military staff Saturday, August 3, taking over what is arguably the most powerful job in a country that has seen three military coups since 1960.

Gen. Hilmi Ozkok, 62, takes control of NATO's second-largest army for the next four years on Aug. 30, when Gen. Huseyin Kivrikoglu retires, the military announced at the end of a four-day meeting.

The military, which last took control of the country in 1980, plays an important role in Turkish politics, usually behind the scenes, and is rarely challenged by civilians leaders. In recent years the military has lead the secular state's battle against political Islam.

Ozkok's appointment comes at a critical time in U.S.-Turkish relations when Turkey may again be called upon to support U.S. military action in neighboring Iraq.

The new chief of staff is also faced with the possibility of dealing with an Islamic party coming to power in early elections set for Nov 3.

The pro-Islamic Justice and Development party is favored to emerge as the strongest party in the elections - a development many fear could replicate a 1997 confrontation between the military and a pro-Islamic government, which eventually bowed to pressure and resigned.

Ozkok gave an indication of his determination to push ahead with the military's anti-Islamic drive in a speech he gave during his investiture as land forces commander in August 2000. He warned at the time that the slightest concession to radical Islam would pull the country back into "the darkness of the Middle Ages."

Ozkok has served as Turkish military representative at NATO headquarters in Brussels and was NATO's Allied Land Forces commander for southeastern Europe in 1996.

As land forces commander, he oversaw the deployment of Turkish peacekeepers in Afghanistan earlier this year.

On Saturday, the military also announced it had dismissed 46 officers for "undisciplined" behavior, pressing ahead with a much-criticized tradition of purging officers suspected of sympathizing with Islamic groups or Kurdish rebels. There was no information on the officers' ranks.

Human rights advocates have criticized the purges in the past because the officers don't have the right to appeal.