Ihsan Nuri

Ihsan Nuri, also known as Ihsan Nuri Pasha (1892 or 1893, Bitlis – March 25, 1976, Tehran) was a Kurdish soldier and politician. Former officer of the Ottoman and Turkish Army. One of leaders of the Ararat rebellion as the generalissimo of the Kurdish National Forces.

Early life
Ihsan Nuri was born in the house of his father Elî Qulî in Bitlis in 1893. After finishing primary education at Gök Meydan mosque in Bitlis, he was registered to Erzincan Military School (Erzincan Askerî Rüştiyesi ). After completing secondary educatıon, he entered to Ottoman Military Academy. In 1910, he graduated from this academy as lieutenant and joined to the Ottoman Army. He participated in the counterinsurgency operations in Albania. And then he was sent to Yemen and served there for 33 months. After returning from Yemen, he was appointed the aide-de-camp of Ottoman 93rd Infantry Regiment and was sent to Beyzon. In the early stage of the First World War, he was injured at Nerman and sent back to rear area for treatment. On the way to Erzincan, he suffered from frostbite near Karaburun. After treatment in Erzincan, he was assigned to the Ottoman Ninth Army, and then he was appointed the member of the administration committee of Ozurgeti in Georgia and served as the commander of the mobile gendarmerie of the town. After the First World War, he got in contact with the Society for the Rise of Kurdistan. He wrote an article about Woodrow Wilson's Fourteen Points, and this was published on March 30, 1919 in Jîn magazine. When he arrived at Trabzon, Rushdi Bey, who was the commander of the 9th Caucassian Division, sent him to Baku to meet authorities of the Red Army.

Republic of Ararat
Kurdish nationalists met in October 1927 and not only proclaimed the independence of Kurdistan, but also formed Xoybûn (Independence), a “supreme national organ … with full and exclusive national and international powers”.

Cognizant of the need for a proper military structure, Xoybûn promoted Ihsan Nuri to general (pasha) and nominated him Commander-In-Chief of the Kurdish National Army. Ihsan Nuri, besides being a former Kurdish member of the Young Turks, showed his allegiance to the Kurdish cause when he led the mutiny within the Turkish military prior to the Sheikh Said rebellion.

By 1928, Ihsan Nuri had assembled a small group of soldiers armed with modern weapons and trained in infantry tactics. This force initiated the Xoybûn revolt, marching towards Mount Ararat. Ihsan Nuri and his men not only achieved success in reaching Mount Ararat, but they were able to secure the towns of Bitlis, Van provinces, and most of the countryside around Lake Van, establishing a notable area of Kurdish resistance.

By the end of summer 1930, the Turkish air forces were bombing Kurdish positions around Mount Ararat from all directions. According to General Ihsan Nuri, the military superiority of Turkish air forces demoralized Kurds and led to their capitulation.

As refugee
During the 1930s, İhsan Nuri arrived as a refugee in Tehran. The government restricted his movements during his years in Tehran. In the summer of 1976, he was injured when he was struck by a motorcycle directly in front of his home at around 10:00 am. He was taken to a local hospital where he died of his wounds during the day. The culprit driving the motorcycle that hit him was never identified or apprehended.