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Kurdish History · Abdullah Öcalan
The Imprisoned Sun
of Kurdistan
A living record of one man's imprisonment
Born in Ömerli, Urfa Province
The fourth of seven children in a poor Kurdish peasant family. Growing up in a region where Kurdish language was banned in schools and public life, Öcalan experienced structural marginalisation from birth.
Ankara University — Political Formation
Studying political science amid Turkey's radical student movements, Öcalan immersed himself in Marxist-Leninist theory and Kurdish activist circles — fusing revolutionary ideology with the reality of a stateless people.
First Imprisonment
Arrested for participating in a boycott protesting the killing of leftist leader Mahir Çayan. He spent seven months in Mamak Military Prison, an experience that hardened his revolutionary resolve and convinced him of the need for an independent Kurdish movement.
The PKK is Founded
In the village of Fis, Diyarbakır province, Öcalan and a small group of comrades formally established the Kurdistan Workers' Party. Its programme called for an independent Kurdish state to be achieved through armed struggle.
Flight to Syria & Lebanon
Sensing the impending 1980 Turkish military coup, Öcalan crossed into Syria. With Palestinian and Syrian support, he established training camps in the Bekaa Valley, transforming the PKK into a formidable guerrilla force.
The Armed Uprising Begins
Simultaneous attacks on Turkish military facilities in Eruh and Şemdinli marked the start of an armed conflict that has lasted over forty years and killed more than 40,000 people. The Turkish state responded with mass displacement.
Ceasefires Repeatedly Rejected
Despite the conflict's brutality, Öcalan declared unilateral ceasefires in 1993, 1995, and 1998, calling on Turkey to engage in political dialogue. Each time the state refused, viewing the PKK solely as a terrorist organisation.
The European Odyssey
Under threat of a Turkish military invasion, Syria expelled Öcalan. This triggered a desperate 130-day search for political asylum across Russia, Italy, and Greece, exposing the reluctance of European states to confront Turkey over the Kurdish question.
Seized in Nairobi — The Betrayal
After being denied asylum across Europe, Öcalan was staying at the Greek embassy in Nairobi when Turkish intelligence — with American and Israeli support — seized him and delivered him to Turkish custody. Kurds protested worldwide.
Death Sentence, Then Life Imprisonment
Tried before a State Security Court and sentenced to death for treason and armed rebellion. In 2002, Turkey abolished the death penalty as part of EU accession reforms — the sentence was commuted to aggravated life imprisonment.
The Prison Island — Isolated but Writing
Held for long periods as İmralı's sole prisoner, sometimes the only inmate allowed outside his cell. Amnesty International and the European Court of Human Rights have described his conditions as amounting to torture by isolation.
Democratic Confederalism — A New Vision
Influenced by American anarchist Murray Bookchin, Öcalan abandoned Marxism-Leninism and the goal of independent statehood. His new theory — democratic confederalism — proposes grassroots direct democracy, radical feminism, and ecology across state borders.
The Newroz Declaration
During the historic "Solution Process" between the PKK and the Turkish state, a letter from Öcalan was read to over a million people in Diyarbakır. He called for silencing weapons and letting "ideas and politics speak," marking the height of hope for a peaceful resolution.
Collapse of the Peace Process
Following the electoral rise of the pro-Kurdish HDP and geopolitical shifts in Syria, the Turkish government abruptly ended the peace process. What followed was a devastating urban war in Kurdish-majority cities and severe crackdowns on political representatives.
Mass Hunger Strikes
Led by Kurdish MP Leyla Güven, thousands of political prisoners and activists worldwide launched an indefinite hunger strike demanding an end to Öcalan's isolation. The strike successfully forced the state to allow brief meetings with his lawyers in 2019.
His Ideas Govern Northern Syria
As Assad's authority collapsed in northern Syria, Kurdish forces implemented Öcalan's ideas in Rojava — mandatory gender co-presidency, women's military forces, multi-ethnic councils. America's primary partner against ISIS was governing itself by the philosophy of a man in a Turkish prison cell.
Absolute Incommunicado
Following a brief, abruptly cut-off phone call with his brother in March 2021, Öcalan was placed under absolute incommunicado isolation for 43 months, completely denied all contact with lawyers and the outside world until October 2024.
The Bahçeli Invitation & Contact
In a shocking political shift, Turkish nationalist leader Devlet Bahçeli publicly invited Öcalan to address parliament and dissolve the PKK. Days later, Öcalan's nephew visited İmralı, officially breaking his 43-month isolation and signaling a renewed back-channel dialogue.
"Peace and Democratic Society"
Öcalan issued a watershed letter calling for the PKK to definitively disarm and dissolve itself. Declaring that the historical conditions justifying armed struggle had passed, he called for democratic political engagement to resolve the 40-year conflict.
The PKK Formally Dissolves
Heeding Öcalan's directive, the PKK held a congress ending its armed insurgency. In July, fighters publicly laid down arms while Öcalan released a rare video message from prison advocating for the power of social peace and democratic transformation.
The "Second Phase" & Right to Hope
As the peace process entered its "second phase" focusing on democratic integration, Turkey's parliamentary peace commission began drafting legal reforms. Crucially, the draft includes discussions on the "right to hope," indicating eventual pathways for Öcalan's release from aggravated life imprisonment.
"He has not been released. He has not stopped being
politically significant."