Mehmed Talat

Mehmed Talat was appointed Minister of Interior in the CUP government. He became the de facto strongman of the empire, controlling internal security and implementing policies of Turkification and population transfers.

As Interior Minister, Mehmed Talat issued the orders for the mass deportation of Armenians from eastern Anatolia. He personally directed the implementation, which resulted in the Armenian Genocide. His role made him the primary architect of the genocide.

Mehmed Talat was appointed Grand Vizier, succeeding Said Halim Pasha. He led the Ottoman government during the final years of World War I, overseeing the empire's war effort and the continuation of genocidal policies.

After the Ottoman defeat in World War I, Mehmed Talat fled to Germany along with other CUP leaders. He was tried in absentia by an Ottoman military court and sentenced to death for his role in the Armenian Genocide.

Mehmed Talat was assassinated in Berlin by Armenian student Soghomon Tehlirian as an act of vengeance for the Armenian Genocide. His assassination was part of Operation Nemesis, a covert Armenian retribution campaign.