The Dersim massacre, also known as Dersim genocide, was carried out by the Turkish military over the course of three operations in the Dersim Province against Kurdish rebels of Alevi faith, and civilians in 1937 and 1938. Although most Kurds in Dersim remained in their home villages, thousands were killed and many others were expelled to other parts of Turkey. Twenty tons of "Chloracetophenon, Iperit and so on" were ordered and used in the massacre. According to Turkish Army general Osman Pamukoğlu in the 1990s, the Dersim massacre was carried on the operational order of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk.