Who is Abdullah Öcalan?
Q: Who is Abdullah Öcalan?
A: Abdullah Öcalan is the leader of Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), an influential terrorist organization in Turkey.
Q: What does "Öcalan" mean in Turkish?
A: In Turkish, "Öcalan" means "he who takes revenge".
Q: Where was Abdullah Öcalan born?
A: He was born on April 4, 1949 into a poor peasant family in the village of Ömerli, in the district of Halfeti in Şanlıurfa Province.
Q: What did he study at university?
A: He studied at vocational school and then pursued a course at the School of Political Science, Ankara University.
Q: When did he become involved with militant Maoist politics?
A: He became involved in militant Maoist politics and was first arrested in 1973.
Q: How did PKK move away from violence towards a political approach? A: Through the 1990s, Öcalan publicly stated his desire to move the PKK away from violence and towards a political approach.
Q: Where was Abdullah Öcalan arrested after fleeing Europe?
A; After fleeing Europe, he was arrested after arriving from Moscow at Rome's Fiumicino Airport.
