War of Independence Articles: “Activities Carried Out on 6 November 1918” (Chapter 10)

Mustafa Kemal Pasha sent a telegram to the General Staff Presidency on the evening of 5/6 November. In the telegram; He stated that he had previously proposed to abolish the 2nd and 7th Armies and attach the corps directly to the Group, that this proposal was based on evaluations derived from practices, that it was the Group Headquarters that specialized in the execution of the army's operations, and that the work would be accelerated by abolishing the Army Headquarters and attaching the corps to the Group.

It would be the worst decision to hand over the work to the weakly organized 7th Army Headquarters. It will take time to take some people from the headquarters to be abolished and form a new 7th Army Headquarters. It is not correct to name the Group Headquarters the 7th Army Headquarters. Because the positions of some chiefs at the Group Headquarters are one degree higher than the positions at the army headquarters. For this reason, it is possible for them to object.

If it is necessary to abolish the Group and one of the two armies, the headquarters to be abolished is not the fully organized 2nd Army Headquarters. Mustafa Kemal Pasha also requested that a commander be appointed to implement the ordered organization if the implementation of the Yıldırım Group organization was not allowed.

He then expressed his views on two telegrams, one open and the other encrypted, sent to the Group on 5 November. The British are not right in wanting to benefit from Iskenderun to feed their armies around Aleppo. Because there is plenty of food in the Aleppo region. If additional supplies are needed, it is possible to obtain them from Kilis and Antep regions.

The aim of the British was to occupy Iskenderun and cut the retreat line of the 7th Army via the Iskenderun-Kırıkhan-Katma road. Thus, the 7th Army will have no choice but to surrender. The fact that the British mobilized Armenian gangs in Islahiye also strengthens this idea.

It is not possible to understand and appreciate the gentlemanliness of the British ambassador and the way he showed kindness in this way. Since it was deemed undesirable to act in this way, if they attempted to land troops in Iskenderun, the British were ordered to respond with fire and the 7th Army was ordered to enter the borders of Antakya via the Katma-Islahiye road.

After these statements, Mustafa Kemal Pasha stated that it was not his nature to carry out orders that would justify and kindly justify the seductive offers of the British, even from the British, and that it was natural for him to face many possibilities, so he asked for the person to be appointed in his place to be notified immediately.

He also sent a telegram regarding the order given on 4 November regarding the implementation of the armistice. He stated that the Hijaz Expeditionary Force is known, but it is not known whether there is a force remaining in Maan and Syria. An attempt was made to communicate the orders given to the Hejaz Expeditionary Force via existing radios, and when it was seen that this was not possible, it was requested to notify them from Istanbul.

Meanwhile, Ali Fuat Pasha, who left the 7th Army Headquarters, came to Adana. Two old friends reviewed the latest situation. Mustafa Kemal Pasha said that the government acted very hesitantly, that he was afraid of the termination of the armistice, and that if the cabinet changed, a government that would replace Ahmet İzzet Pasha would not be able to exist even this much.

Two Generals; They concluded that the Allied Powers would invade the country by fait accompli. For this purpose, they will try to capture the part of the Turkish army on the line of contact or have them demobilized. Then they will impose their demands by force. The fact that the British wanted to occupy Iskenderun is an indication of this. In this case, the Sultan will think about his throne.

Mustafa Kemal Pasha; From now on, the nation must seek and defend its own rights, and the army and corps commanders must guide the people as much as possible and help them together with the entire army, and that the most important duty now falls to him, because the Yıldırım Army Group and the 7th Army Headquarters He said that it would be abolished and that he would remain at the head of the 20th Corps. Ali Fuat Pasha explains this as it was decided to establish the first center of resistance in Cilicia.

It is understood from the telegrams sent mutually that a tension arose between Ahmet İzzet Pasha and Mustafa Kemal Pasha. As a matter of fact, according to Rauf Bey in his memoirs; From a telegram he received on Wednesday, he learned that a French detachment that came to Iskenderun started scanning the torpedoes in the harbor without seeing the need to contact the officials there, and suffered casualties when one of the torpedoes exploded. Thereupon he went to Sadaret Mansion.

The Grand Vizier showed him the conversation he had with Mustafa Kemal Pasha regarding this issue. “The British commander, who succeeded in occupying Aleppo shortly before the armistice was signed, said that our army had destroyed the railways and bridges while retreating.

When the division commander asked Mustafa Kemal Pasha about this issue, he replied that such a thing could not be agreed to and informed the Grand Vizier Ahmet İzzet Pasha of the situation. informed. Thereupon, when Ahmet İzzet Pasha notified that the British should not prevent the transport of the wounded and sick, claiming that they acted honestly in the armistice negotiations, Mustafa Kemal Pasha responded to this notification by saying that, considering the danger of cutting the retreat line of a detachment of ours located in the west of the İskenderun highway and near Antakya, the British should not prevent this highway. He stated that he could not consent to their use and that he had ordered the commander of the forces there to be met with fire if the British tried to pass through this highway.

However, according to the administrative division of the state, since the Antakya liva was subject to the Aleppo province, it remained within the Syrian region, which we agreed to be evacuated sooner or later in accordance with the provisions of the armistice. There was no doubt that Mustafa Kemal Pasha knew this. It was understood from the telegram he sent to the sultan upon Talat Pasha's resignation that he agreed with them that we had no choice but to make a ceasefire. This being the case, it was unclear what could be made of his rejection of the British offer to send the sick and wounded, based on the provisions of the armistice. I said to him; I guess that the dispute will be resolved if you repeat your orders to Mustafa Kemal Pasha, explaining the requirements of the armistice and the politeness and necessity of the situation.”

From now on, Ahmet İzzet Pasha started to use harsher expressions to make Mustafa Kemal Pasha comply with the orders.