Erdogan nurtures elite mercenary force to rival Russia’s Wagner Group

A close confidant of Turkey’s president Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Adnan Tanriverdi claims expertise in all the dark arts of warfare.
In the eyes of some, he is the Islamic world’s most powerful gun-for-hire, a well-connected ex-general with thousands of battle-hardened Syrian mercenaries at his command. A close confidant of Turkey’s president Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Adnan Tanriverdi claims expertise in all the dark arts of warfare, from sabotage and counter-insurgency to assassinations.