Turkey names new army chief in unexpected reshuffle
While official releases cited staffing shortages as the reason, it has been roughly a decade since a Turkish chief of staff has retired before completing a full four-year tenure.
ANKARA — Turkey’s top military council on Tuesday abruptly replaced Army Chief of Staff Metin Gurak, marking the first early departure from the post in over a decade.
What happened: Gurak was retired during Turkey’s annual Supreme Military Council meeting chaired by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, according to an official release published by the presidency’s communications directorate. Gurak, who was appointed as the Turkish Army’s chief of staff in 2023, was succeeded by Selcuk Bayrataroglu, the current ground forces commander.
Bayrataroglu has a strong background in command and strategic roles within the Turkish Land Forces. His career spans key leadership positions in signal units, commando brigades, logistics, cyber defense and personnel management.
He also served as deputy chief of general staff before being appointed ground forces commander in 2023.
