Hasan Mazhar

The Young Turk government quickly intervened, sending a delegate, Atıf Kamçıl, at the beginning of July 1915 to monitor his actions.

"[5]On November 23, 1918, Sultan Mehmed VI established a government inquiry commission on the Armenian genocide, and Hasan Mazhar Bey was naturally appointed as its president, as he was one of the few Ottoman administrators who had not been involved in the massacres.

[1] From November 1918 onwards, he sent questionnaires to all provinces to record sworn oral or written statements from Turkish political or military figures.

Mazhar Bey initially requested that every prefect and sub-prefect send him the originals or certified copies of all orders they received during the genocide.

[7][8] The complex political situation in the aftermath of World War I and the absence of the concept of genocide prior to the Holocaust may have hindered the commission.

Despite the challenging political situation, Mazhar was not afraid of possible reprisals; he prohibited 26 Young Turk deputies from leaving the capital to prevent their escape and had 13 Ottoman ministers interrogated.

[10][12] The establishment of military courts to investigate the crimes of the Young Turks was a logical continuation of the work of the Mazhar Commission, and on December 16, 1918, the sultan officially created such tribunals.