Unprecedented political violence had erupted in Turkey in the late 1970s . The overall death toll of the 1970s is estimated at 5,000 , with nearly ten assassinations per day . Most were members of left-wing and right-wing political organizations , then engaged in bitter fighting . The ultra-nationalist Grey Wolves , youth organisation of the MHP , claimed they were supporting the security forces . According to the British '' Searchlight magazine '' , in 1978 there were 3,319 fascist attacks , in which 831 were killed and 3,121 wounded . In the central trial against the left-wing organization Devrimci Yol ( Revolutionary Path ) at Ankara Military Court the defendants listed 5,388 political killings before the military coup . Among the victims were 1,296 right-wingers and 2,109 left-wingers . The others could not clearly be related . The 1978 Bahçelievler massacre , the 1977 Taksim Square massacre with 35 victims and the 1978 Maraş massacre with over 100 victims are some notable incidents . Martial law was announced following the Maraş massacre in 14 of ( then ) 67 provinces in December 1978 . At the time of the coup , martial law had been extended to 20 provinces
Maraş massacre
Maraş massacre
Political violence in Turkey (1976–80)