Türkiye’s National Intelligence Organization on Wednesday made public a previously classified document from Nov. 11, 1964, detailing the stay of Iranian revolutionary leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini in the country.
"The Iranian guest has arrived in Türkiye, and it has been decided that he will reside in Bursa. The house where the guest will stay and other arrangements concerning him will be personally handled by the Bursa Yuva Directorate," the document said.
The file was sent by National Security Service chief Ziya Selışık to the Istanbul Central Office during Khomeini's stay in Türkiye under MIT surveillance between Nov. 4, 1964, and Oct. 5, 1965.
"The necessary written and verbal instructions have been sent to the Bursa Yuva Directorate. The alias 'Belli' will be used in encrypted and other correspondence concerning the guest. Submitted for your information," the document concluded.
The document is available in the Document section under the Special Collection tab on MIT's official website.
Khomeini was an Iranian Shiite cleric, political leader and the architect of the 1979 Islamic Revolution, which overthrew the U.S.-backed Shah and led to the creation of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
He became a prominent opponent of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi in the 1960s, criticizing his Western-backed reforms and calling for an Islamic system of governance based on clerical rule.
Khomeini was forced into exile in 1964 after his outspoken opposition, spending years in Türkiye, Iraq and later France before returning to Iran to lead the revolution.
