A deeply troubling question now hangs over Turkey’s ruling establishment: how did a man allegedly linked to Iran’s most notorious covert operations unit rise through the Turkish state—and even secure a powerful position inside the World Bank in Washington?

At the center of this controversy is Hayrettin Demircan, now serving as an economic adviser to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Documents originating from a once-confidential Turkish counterterrorism investigation suggest that Demircan was not merely a passive observer, but a figure of interest in a covert network tied to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Quds Force—Tehran’s primary vehicle for exporting influence, subversion, and proxy power.

If these findings are even partially accurate, they point to a deeply unsettling reality: that individuals suspected of proximity to foreign intelligence operations may have penetrated not only the upper echelons of a NATO member state, but also gained access to one of the world’s most influential financial institutions.

The allegations stem from an extensive investigation into what Turkish authorities once described as the “Selam Tevhid” network—an alleged IRGC-linked apparatus operating inside Turkey with the aim of cultivating political, bureaucratic, and economic leverage.

The probe took shape after authorities obtained sensitive documents from Hüseyin Avni Yazıcıoğlu, a figure long associated with Iranian intelligence circles. According to investigators, Yazıcıoğlu was tasked by Quds Force handlers to identify and........

© Blitz