İsmail Erez

İsmail Erez (28 September 1919 – 24 October 1975) was a Turkish diplomat who held several high-ranking posts in the Turkish Foreign Service.

İsmail Erez
Erez sometime before his death
Turkish Ambassador to France
In office 2 November 1974 – 24 October 1975
President	Fahri Korutürk
37th Turkish Ambassador to Italy
In office 19 November 1970 – 17 April 1972
President	Cevdet Sunay
Preceded by	Turan Tuluy
Succeeded by	Pertev Subaşı
7th Turkish Ambassador to Lebanon
In office 19 December 1967 – 1 January 1970
President	Cevdet Sunay
Preceded by	Taha Carım
Succeeded by	Ercüment Yavuzalp
Personal details
Born	(1919-09-28)28 September 1919 Istanbul, Ottoman Empire
Died	24 October 1975(1975-10-24) (aged 56) Paris, France
Nationality	Turkish
Alma mater	Galatasaray High School
Profession	Diplomat

Life and career

İsmail Erez was born on 28 September 1919, in Bakırköy district of Istanbul. His parents were graduates of a law school, Hasan Tahsin Erez and Emine Şahande. His mother died when he was only two years old. He graduated from Galatasaray High School with honors and proceeded to the School of Political Science in 1939 and graduated with a degree in 1943.^[1] İsmail Erez then entered the Foreign Service and worked in several positions within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs including representative positions in the United Nations, World Health Organization and UNESCO. After serving as the General Secretary at the Turkish Embassy in Washington, D.C., he was appointed the Ambassador of Turkey to Beirut, Lebanon on 19 December 1967 serving as an envoy to both Lebanon and Kuwait. In 1970, he was appointed the Ambassador of Turkey to Italy and from 1972 until 1974 worked at the General Secretariat of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkey. On 2 November 1974, he was appointed the Ambassador of Turkey to France.^[1]

Assassination

On Friday 24 October 1975, İsmail Erez was returning from a reception and as his vehicle approached the building of the Turkish Embassy in Paris, a group of 3–4 armed Armenian militants from ASALA ambushed the automobile killing him and his driver Talip Yener.^[2] The death shocked Turkey as they came just two days after the first assassination of a Turkish ambassador to Austria, Daniş Tunalıgil by an Armenian militant organization (both ASALA and JCAG claimed responsibility).^{[3] [4][5][6]}

Erez's grave in Turkey

See also

• Assassination of Daniş Tunalıgil
• List of assassinated people from Turkey
• List of diplomatic missions of Turkey
• List of Turkish diplomats assassinated by Armenian militant organisations

References

1. "İSMAİL EREZ (1919-1975)". Archived from the original on 31 October 2010. Retrieved 27 October 2010.
2. "MFA of Turkey: Assassinated Turkish Diplomats/Officials and Their Families Serving in Missions Abroad". Archived from the original on 14 May 2011. Retrieved 27 October 2010.
3. Most Armenians in Beirut Support Attacks on Turks. By MARVINE HOWE, The New York Times, March 01, 1980, p. 4
4. "Armenians Web Portal". Archived from the original on 21 May 2011. Retrieved 27 October 2010.
5. Rubin, Barry M.; Colp Rubin, Judith (2008). Chronologies of modern terrorism. M.E. Sharpe. p. 68.
6. "Observer Reporter". October 25, 1975. Retrieved 28 September 2012.