Mustafa Karasu

Mustafa Karasu
Nickname(s)Huseyin Ali[1]
BornKarapınar, Gürün District, Sivas Province
AllegianceKurdistan Workers' Party
RankDeputy Chairman of PKK

Leader of ERNK
Politibureau member

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

Mustafa Karasu also known as Huseyin Ali is a deputy chairman[2] Turkish founder 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 Karapınar, 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]

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. ^ "Hazine ve Maliye Bakanlığından: Malvarlığının Dondurulması Kararı" (PDF). p. 10. Archived (PDF) from the original on 6 April 2021. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  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: [1] (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.