Clergy of Siirt in the Period of National Struggle

The Russian invasions reached Bitlis with the Sarıkamış tragedy experienced in the World War I. The Russians, coming as far as “Delikli Taş”, moved towards Siirt. Fierce wars were fought with the Russians in this period. There was a great public participation in these wars. Clerics such as Sheikh Şerafeddin al-Farsafi and Sheikh Mahmoud Zokaydi, one of the prominent spiritual leaders of Siirt, voluntarily went to the front and participated in the war against the Russians. Siirt was not occupied during the National Struggle. However, there had been great diplomatic fights between the imperialist powers over the geography including Siirt. In this process, the people of Siirt made their choices from the first day and gave great support to the National Struggle. Siirt's spiritual leaders took to the field and made great efforts to inform, raise awareness and fight for the people. Association for Defence of National Rights was established in Siirt under the leadership of Mufti Halil Hulki (Aydın), one of the leading clerics of Siirt. The Association sent telegrams of protests, reacting harshly against the occupations and also sent delegates to the Erzurum Congress on behalf of Siirt. Since Mufti Halil Hulki Bey joined the new parliament opened in Ankara on April 23, 1920, Cemil Aydın, an ulema, assumed this valuable task. Cemil Aydın, worked very actively in Siirt and organized various events for the National Struggle. Salih Safi Atalay, one of the important opinion leaders of Siirt, also supported the National Struggle and took place as a deputy in the First Assembly. In addition, Sheikh Celalettin Kardeş made great efforts to raise the morale of the soldiers by visiting the battlefield.

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