Murat Karayılan
| Murat Karayılan | |
|---|---|
| Born |
1954 (age 60–61) Birecik, Şanlıurfa, Turkey |
| Allegiance | Kurdistan Workers' Party |
| Battles/wars | Turkey–PKK conflict |
Murat Karayılan (born 1954),[1] also nicknamed Cemal,[2] is the acting leader[3] of the Kurdistan Workers Party (commonly known as the Partiya Karkerên Kurdistani or PKK), a designated terrorist organization by the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Germany, the European Union, and NATO.[4] He has been the PKK's acting leader since its original founder and leader, Abdullah Öcalan, was captured in 1999.[5]
Born in Birecik, Şanlıurfa, Karayılan finished his studies at a vocational college of machinery and joined the PKK in 1979. He was active in his native province of Şanlıurfa until he fled to Syria at the time of the 1980 Turkish coup d'état.[1] He has called on Kurds to stop serving in the military of Turkey, stop paying taxes and stop using the Turkish language.[6] In August 2011, it was alleged that he had been captured by Iranian forces, a claim denied by both Iran and the PKK. Nevertheless this led to many conspiracy theories about how Karayılan was released by Iranian forces, proving his alleged links to Iran.
Suspicions of drug trafficking
On October 14, 2009, the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) targeted the senior leadership of the PKK, designating as significant foreign narcotics traffickers, Murat Karayılan, the head of the PKK, and high-ranking members Ali Rıza Altun and Zübeyir Aydar. Pursuant to the Kingpin Act, the designation freezes any assets the three designees may have under U.S. jurisdiction and prohibits U.S. persons from conducting financial or commercial transactions with these individuals.[7]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Murat Karayılan yakalandı mı?, 13 August 2011
- ↑ "MFA - I. Historical Background and Development". Retrieved 23 January 2015.
- ↑ Gareth Jenkins. "Al-Ahram Weekly - Region - Where's 'Plan B'?". Retrieved 23 January 2015.
- ↑ "Foreign Terrorist Organizations". U.S. Department of State. Retrieved 23 January 2015.
- ↑ "Kurdish PKK rebel leader, Karayilan, softens tone in Turkish conflict". Retrieved 23 January 2015.
- ↑ "End to Turkey's Kurdish conflict fades from sight". The Daily Star Newspaper - Lebanon. Retrieved 23 January 2015.
- ↑ Press Center (October 14, 2009). "Treasury Designates Three Leaders of the Kongra-Gel as Significant Foreign Narcotics Traffickers". U.S. Department of the Treasury. Retrieved April 23, 2011.