SADAT International Defense Consultancy Inc.

SADAT Inc. International Defense Consultancy (Turkish: Uluslararası Savunma Danışmanlık Şirketi) is a private Turkish PMC headquartered in Istanbul, Turkey. It is the country's first domestic military consultancy firm, founded in 2012 by former Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) brigadier general, Adnan Tanrıverdi.[2] The company operates within the Middle East and provides services such as military and interior training, defense consultancy, and ordnance procurement. SADAT's mission and purpose remains shrouded in controversy, facing allegations from anti-Justice and Development Party (AKP) sources. These allegations range from supporting establishing a private army loyal to President Tayyip Recep Erdogan. It has close communication and cooperation with the Turkish National Intelligence Organization.[3] Sadat's CEO admits working with Turkish intelligence agency on March 21 2021.[4]

SADAT
TypePrivate military company
IndustryPrivate military training services contractor
Founded2012 (2012)
Istanbul, Turkey
FoundersAdnan Tanrıverdi
HeadquartersMarmara Mah. Hurriyet Bulvari No:110/H
Beylikdüzü, İstanbul
Turkey[1]
40.974834°N 28.667477°E / 40.974834; 28.667477
Area served
Worldwide
Key people
Melih Tanrıverdi
ProductsLaw enforcement training
ServicesInternational defense and interior security consulting
Websitewww.sadat.com.tr/

Company profile

Adnan Tanriverdi, along with 22 other Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) officers and non-commissioned officers (NCOs), created SADAT Inc. on February 28, 2012. The organization maintained a board of directors including Adnan and four other members. His son, Mehli Tanriverdi, is the current chairman of the board. The company employees between 50 and 200 former TSK officers from various branches and specializations. Its list of services include:

  • Consultancy
  • Training
    • Conventional Military Training
    • Unconventional Military Training
    • Special Forces Training
  • Ordnance

The company's stated mission is "establishing the connection among the Islamic countries in the sense of defense and military industries, in order to assist the Islamic world to take the rank it deserves among super world powers as a self-sufficient military power, by submitting them the services regarding the organization of armed forces, defense consultancy, military training, and ordnance."[5]

SADAT Inc. has a sister organization, ASSAM, with a more political focus that was also headed by Adnan Tanriverdi until January 2020.[6] It runs a strategic studies center and hosts annual conventions.[7]

Controversies

Connection to President Erdogan and AKP

Following the attempted coup of July 15, 2016, President Erdogan appointed Adnan Tanriverdi to his cabinet as chief military counselor.[8][9] The close relationship between Tanriverdi and Erdogan, who were relieved from political and military offices in the late 1990s for their Islamic convictions, has sparked allegations of corrupt behavior.[10] These accusations including the belief that SADAT represents and exists as Erdogan's "private militia."

Involvement against the 2016 coup d'état attempt

According to American Enterprise Institute's (AEI) Michael Rubin, SADAT personnel were active and participated in anti-coup efforts on the night of July 15, 2016. Rubin and others reference social media posts and videos captured by Turkish citizens, which supposedly show SADAT personnel attacking putschists on the Bosphorus Bridge in Istanbul, Turkey.[11][12]

Training Islamist Jihadists

Sources state that SADAT is actively training Islamist elements who adhere to a Islamic ideology in Syria and other locations in the Middle East.[13] These locations include Somalia and Qatar, where Turkey has established military training centers and formed cooperative partnerships with the host countries' governments.[14] Additionally, a QatariLeaks video identifies the Sudanese port city of Suakin as another potential site of SADAT involvement.[15]

Involvement in Syrian Civil War
Main article: Turkish involvement in the Syrian civil war

In 2012 Aydınlık newspaper reported that SADAT established several bases in the Istanbul and Marmara region and trained Syrian fighters. SADAT transported Syrians in these facilities for training and then Turkey used them in Syria.[16]

In 2015, the SADAT founder called in an interview for the establishment of autonomous Turkmen and Sunni Arab areas along the Turkish-Syrian borders.[16]

Connections with Hamas

In 2018, the Israel Security Agency accused SADAT of transferring funds to Hamas.[16]

Involvement in Libyan Civil War
Main article: Turkish military intervention in the Second Libyan Civil War

In 2020, the United States Department of Defense accused SADAT of training Syrians who were sent to support pro-Turkish forces in Libya.[17]

According to a report by the United States Africa Command, the Syrian mercenaries are paid and supervised by SADAT trainers who also trained other militias in Libya.[16]

In March 2021, the United Nations released a report which mention that SADAT violated the UN resolutions in Libya.[18]

Involvement in 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war

SADAT has been responsible for recruiting, equipping, and transporting Syrian mercenaries to Azerbaijan, in order to fight at the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war.[16][19][20]

References
  1. "SADAT Home". Retrieved January 16, 2020.
  2. Cubukcu, Saut. "The Rise of Paramilitary Groups in Turkey". ResearchGate.
  3. "Turkish paramilitary firm Sadat's CEO admits working with Turkish intelligence agency MIT". Nordic Monitor. Retrieved 16 March 2021.
  4. "Turkish paramilitary firm Sadat's CEO admits working with Turkish intelligence agency MIT - Nordic Monitor". nordicmonitor.com. Retrieved 2021-04-11.
  5. Karmon, Ely; Barak, Michael. "Erdogan's Turkey and the Palestinian Issue". Terrorism Analysts.
  6. Yayla, Ahmet S. (2020-01-23). "Is Erdogan Preparing "Erdoganistan"?". The Investigative Journal. Retrieved 2020-06-06.
  7. "Three-Year Activity Plan - ASSAM". assam.org.tr. Retrieved 2020-06-06.
  8. Rubin, Michael. "Has SADAT become Erdogan's Revolutionary Guards?". American Enterprise Institute.
  9. "Turkey's Erdoğan selects controversial security contractor as his new advisor". Ahval News.
  10. Spyer, Dr. Jonathan. "Erdogan's Shadow Army: The Influence of "Sadat," Turkey's Private Defense Group". The Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security.
  11. Jacinto, Leela. "Turkey's Post-Coup Purge and Erdogan's Private Army". Foreign Policy.
  12. "July 15 Erdogan's Coup" (PDF). Stockholm Center for Freedom.
  13. Spyer, Dr. Jonathan. "Erdogan's Shadow Army: The Influence of "Sadat," Turkey's Private Defense Group". Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security.
  14. Rubin, Michael. "US missteps in Somalia benefit our enemies". American Enterprise Institute.
  15. "Sadat Inc.: The Turkish revolutionary guard in Qatar". YouTube. QatariLeaks.
  16. Dr. Hay Eytan Cohen Yanarocak; Dr. Jonathan Spyer (25 January 2021). "Turkish Militias and Proxies". trendsresearch.
  17. "Turkey's Islamic defence consultancy takes on West". france24. france24.
  18. Final report of the Panel of Experts on Libya established pursuant to Security Council resolution 1973 (2011). United Nation, 8 March 2021.
  19. "How does Turkey transfer mercenaries to Azerbaijan?". Atalayar. 20 October 2020. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
  20. Cohen Yanarocak, Hay Eytan; Spyer, Jonathan (27 January 2021). "Turkish Militias and Proxies". JISS. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
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