Shah regime had send Imam to Turkey to spend several months there in exile, but later become concerned and managed to send Imam to Bura, a small city in Turkey.
Agents of Shah regime had felt that Istanbul was an international city and a hub for cultural activities, and Imam will undertake all efforts to convey his message to the international level. Therefore, Imam was soon transferred to smaller city of Bursa.
During the 1960's Bursa was a relatively quiet city and the means of communication with the outer world were scarce. Thus it met the needs of the Pahlavi regime, who wanted the Imam to have no contact with the outer world.
Qom's security forces and the SAVAK intelligence services arrested Imam Khomeini in the early hours of the 4th of November 1964, and transferred him to Mehrabad international airport in Tehran. From there, he was exiled and was sent to live in Istanbul.
However after a week had passed, the Turkish authorities and the Iranian government decided to send the Imam to Bursa, which is situated in northwest Turkey.
This was due to the fact that the Imam made contact with Iranian clergymen while he was in Istanbul. This worried Iran and Turkey and so Turkey proposed that the Imam should go and live in Bursa, which was a quiet city.
Another reason why this particular city was chosen was due to the fact that Iranians were not very familiar with the whereabouts of this city. Imam Khomeini was forced to stay in Bursa for eleven months.
It is worthy to mention that Imam spent about 15 years in exile in Turkey, Iraq and France before making a comeback to homeland in 1979 following the victory of the Islamic Revolution.
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IMAM KHOMEINI IN BURSA- TURKEY