Mustafa Karasu

Last updated
Mustafa Karasu
Nickname(s)Huseyin Ali [1]
Born Gürün, Sivas Province, Turkey
Allegiance Kurdistan Workers' Party
RankDeputy Chairman of PKK

Leader of ERNK
Politibureau member

KCK executive council member
UnitERNK (previously)
Battles/wars Kurdish–Turkish conflict

Mustafa Karasu also known as Huseyin Ali is a deputy chairman [2] of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), [3] a Kurdish rebel group fighting an armed insurgency against the government of Turkey for an independent Kurdistan. The group is recognised as a terrorist organisation by Turkey, the United States and EU. [4]

Biography

Karasu was born in Gürün. [5] Along with Cemil Bayık and Duran Kalkan he is viewed as one of the hardliners among the PKK's leadership and is alleged to have links to Iran. [6] He is the leader of the Alevi groups within the PKK. [7] His name was on the list of 248 PKK members of which Turkey wished extradication from Iraq on July 10, 2010. [8]

He was imprisoned for several years after the 1980 Turkish coup d'état, after his release he became a member of the PKK's politburo (leadership council) and led the group's popular front: the ERNK. [9] After working in the PKK's political wing for 3 years, in Europe he was called back to South-Eastern Turkey by Abdullah Ocalan to gain more battle experience. [10] He is currently the member of the Executive Council (de facto government) of the Koma Civakên Kurdistan (KCK), which is the PKK's umbrella organisation. [11] He has repeatedly spoken out on the side of the Palestinians when talking about the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. [12] [13]

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References

  1. "MFA - I. Historical Background and Development" . Retrieved 23 January 2015.
  2. "How Kurdish PKK Militants Are Exploiting the Crisis in Syria to Achieve Regional Autonomy". The Jamestown Foundation. Retrieved 23 January 2015.
  3. "World Tribune.com: PKK ends ceasefire with Turkey, attacks reported near border" . Retrieved 23 January 2015.
  4. US State Department Background Information on Foreign Terrorist Organizations, 8 October 1999
  5. Çok başlı PKK Archived 2012-02-19 at the Wayback Machine , Aksiyon, 27 September 2010.
  6. "Today's Zaman" . Retrieved 23 January 2015.
  7. "Terror expert says Iran wants to use PKK as leverage". TodaysZaman. Archived from the original on 16 August 2011. Retrieved 23 January 2015.
  8. "For first time, no PKK extradition list given to Iraq". TodaysZaman. Archived from the original on 23 January 2015. Retrieved 23 January 2015.
  9. Historical dictionary of the Kurds: (page 158)
  10. Gunter, Michael M. (15 May 1997). The Kurds and the Future of Turkey. ISBN   9780312172657 . Retrieved 23 January 2015.
  11. "DİHA - Ajansa Nûçeyan a Dîcleyê". Archived from the original on 23 January 2015. Retrieved 23 January 2015.
  12. "Palestinian Freedom Struggle and Kurdistan – An Interview with Mustafa Karasu" . Retrieved 3 October 2021.
  13. "Jerusalem, the capital of humanity" . Retrieved 3 October 2021.