Ocalan: founder of the Kurdish militant PKK who authored its end

Abdullah Ocalan, the jailed laminitis of the militant Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), is an icon to galore Kurds but a "terrorist" to galore wrong wider Turkish society.

After a decades-long insurgency against the Turkish authorities that resulted successful tens of thousands of deaths, the PKK said connected Monday it was disbanding and ending its equipped struggle.

The determination came aft Ocalan issued a historical telephone connected February 27 for his fighters to laic down their arms successful a large measurement towards ending the decades-long conflict.

Now 76, Ocalan has been held successful solitary confinement since 1999 connected Imrali situation land adjacent Istanbul.

But since October, erstwhile Turkey tentatively moved to reset ties with the PKK, Ocalan has been visited respective times by lawmakers from the pro-Kurdish absorption DEM party.

For galore Turks, the PKK person is nationalist force fig one.

He founded the radical successful 1978. Six years later, it began an insurgency demanding independency and aboriginal broader autonomy successful Turkey's mostly Kurdish southeast.

A Marxist-inspired group, the PKK was blacklisted arsenic a "terror" organisation by Ankara, Washington, Brussels and galore different Western countries.

- An olive subdivision -

Attitudes began shifting successful October erstwhile ultra-nationalist MHP person Devlet Bahceli, a adjacent state of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, offered Ocalan an olive subdivision if helium would publically renounce violence.

The adjacent day, the erstwhile guerrilla, who embodies the decades-long Kurdish rebellion, received his archetypal household sojourn successful 4 years.

He sent backmost a connection saying helium unsocial could displacement the Kurdish question "from an arena of struggle and unit to 1 of instrumentality and politics", aboriginal offering assurances helium was "ready to... marque the call".

Ankara's determination came soon earlier Syrian rebels overthrew ruler Bashar al-Assad, upending the determination equilibrium of powerfulness and thrusting Turkey's analyzable narration with the Kurds into the spotlight.

- From colony beingness to militancy -

Ocalan was calved connected April 4, 1949, 1 of six siblings successful a mixed Turkish-Kurdish peasant household successful Omerli, a colony successful Turkey's southeast.

His parent lingua is Turkish.

He became a left-wing activistic portion studying authorities astatine assemblage successful Ankara and was archetypal jailed successful 1972.

He acceptable up the PKK six years later, past spent years connected the run, launching the movement's equipped conflict successful 1984.

Taking refuge successful Syria, helium led the combat from there, causing friction betwixt Damascus and Ankara.

Forced retired successful 1998, helium moved from Russia to Italy to Greece successful hunt of a haven, ending up astatine the Greek consulate successful Kenya, wherever US agents got upwind of his beingness and tipped disconnected Turkey.

He was arrested connected February 15, 1999, aft being lured into a conveyance successful a Hollywood-style cognition by Turkish information forces.

Sentenced to death, helium escaped the gallows erstwhile Turkey started abolishing superior punishment successful 2002, surviving retired the remainder of his days successful isolation connected Imrali situation land successful the Sea of Marmara adjacent Istanbul.

For galore Kurds, helium is simply a leader whom they notation to arsenic "Apo" (uncle). But Turks often telephone him "bebek katili" (baby killer) for ruthless tactics that see the bombing of civilian targets.

- Jailed but inactive starring -

With Ocalan's arrest, Ankara thought it had decapitated the PKK.

But adjacent from his compartment helium continued to lead, ordering a ceasefire that lasted from 1999 until 2004.

In 2005, helium ordered followers to renounce the thought of an autarkic Kurdish authorities and run for autonomy successful their respective countries.

Tentative moves to resoluteness Turkey's "Kurdish problem" began successful 2008 and respective years aboriginal Ocalan became progressive successful the archetypal unofficial bid talks, erstwhile Erdogan was premier minister.

Led by past spy main Hakan Fidan -- who is present overseas curate -- the talks raised Kurdish hopes for a solution with their aboriginal wrong Turkey's borders.

But the effort collapsed successful July 2015, sparking 1 of the deadliest chapters successful the conflict.

The authorities has defended its de facto silencing of Ocalan, saying helium failed to person the PKK of the request for peace.

Seen arsenic the world's largest stateless people, Kurds were near without a state erstwhile the Ottoman Empire collapsed aft World War I.

Although astir unrecorded successful Turkey, wherever they marque up astir a 5th of the population, the Kurds are besides dispersed crossed Syria, Iraq and Iran.

Turkey's widescale usage of combat drones has pushed astir Kurdish fighters into bluish Syria and Iraq, wherever Ankara has continued its raids.

bur-hmw/gil