62-485: Jalal Talabani ( Kurdish : مام جەلال تاڵەبانی , romanized : Celal Talebanî ; Arabic : جلال طالباني Jalāl Ṭālabānī ; 12 November 1933 – 3 October 2017) was an Kurdistanî politician who served as the sixth president of Iraq from 2005 to 2014, as well as the president of the Governing Council of Iraq . He was ethnically Kurdish . Talabani was the founder and secretary-general of one of
124-599: A broad cross-section of Kurdish society. The membership of the PUK, based on statistics compiled in September 1998, stands at 800,280 members and associates. The PUK contested the 1992 elections for the Kurdistan National Assembly , and the party list acquired 423,682 votes of the total of 957,469 valid votes cast - giving the PUK commanding majority in three of Kurdistan Region 's four provinces. The PUK
186-483: A dialect of Southern Kurdish or as a fourth language under Kurdish is a matter of debate, but the differences between Laki and other Southern Kurdish dialects are minimal. The literary output in Kurdish was mostly confined to poetry until the early 20th century, when more general literature became developed. Today, the two principal written Kurdish dialects are Kurmanji and Sorani. Sorani is, along with Arabic , one of
248-894: A large force to drive Ahmad, Talabani, and their 4,000 or so followers into exile in Iran. With this, Mulla Mustafa had finally achieved undisputed control of the KDP. After the defeat of the Kurds in the 1974–1975 Revolt , on 22 May 1975, Talabani met in a coffee shop called Gligla, in Aum Rmana , Damascus , with Fuad Mausm, Adel Murad , and Abdul Razaq Faily. That day, the PUK announced its formation via Syrian and Lebanese media. The day after, Talabani visited Berlin in West Germany and met three other co-founders, Nawshirwan Mustafa, Omar Shekhmus, and Kamal Fwad, and some other activists. On 1 June 1975,
310-574: A long-term guerrilla war. Arif threatened force against any Kurdish opponent of Mustafa, while Mustafa declared that any resistance to Baghdad would constitute a declaration of war against himself and the Barzanis. Ibrahim Ahmad and Jalal Talabani decried this complicity, and as they saw it, submission, to Baghdad. Mulla Mustafa rallied the conservatives and tribal leaders to his side. Furious debates and campaigning followed, but Ahmad's and Talabani's arguments could not dislodge Mulla Mustafa's position as
372-527: A negotiated settlement to the Iraqi Kurdish Civil War , as well as the larger issue of Kurdish rights in the current regional context. He worked closely with other Kurdish politicians as well as the rest of the Iraqi opposition factions. In close coordination with Masoud Barzani , Talabani and the Kurds played a key role as a partner of the U.S. led Coalition in the invasion of Iraq. Talabani
434-635: A result of a series of meetings within the cadres of the Aylul Revolution who took refuge in Iran in 1975, including Omer Dababa, Ali Askari , Dr. Khalid, Ali Hazhar, Kardo Galali, Ibrahim Ahmad , Jamal Agha, Rasul Mamand, Mala Nasih, Abdulrahman Gomashini, Milazm Tahir, Ali Wali and Kamal Mihedeen. The PUK served as an umbrella organization unifying various trends within the Kurdish political movement in Iraq . The PUK received grassroots support from
496-740: A result of his illness, the PUK became consumed by a succession crisis. Jalal Talabani died on 3 October 2017, at the age of 83 in Berlin , Germany of cerebral hemorrhage due to the complications caused by the stroke he suffered five years prior in 2012. He died a few days after the referendum about the independence of Iraqi Kurdistan was approved by the voters. Masoud Barzani , President of Kurdistan Regional Government and for years his Kurdish rival, announced seven days of mourning in Iraqi Kurdistan in memory of Talabani. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi also announced three days of mourning in
558-510: A variety that was an important literary language since the 14th century, but it was replaced by Central Kurdish in the 20th century. European scholars have maintained that Gorani is separate from Kurdish and that Kurdish is synonymous with the Northern Kurdish group, whereas ethnic Kurds maintain that Kurdish encompasses any of the unique languages or dialects spoken by Kurds that are not spoken by neighbouring ethnic groups. Gorani
620-565: Is a Northwestern Iranian language or group of languages spoken by Kurds in the region of Kurdistan , namely in southeast Turkey , northern Iraq , northwest Iran , and northern Syria . It is also spoken in northeast Iran, as well as in certain areas of Armenia and Azerbaijan . Kurdish varieties constitute a dialect continuum , with some mutually unintelligible varieties, and collectively have 26 million native speakers. The main varieties of Kurdish are Kurmanji , Sorani , and Southern Kurdish ( Xwarîn ). The majority of
682-549: Is a political party active in Kurdistan Region and the disputed territories in Iraq . The PUK describes its goals as self-determination , human rights , democracy and peace for the Kurdish people of Kurdistan and Iraq . The PUK is currently under the leadership of Bafel Talabani . The PUK was founded in 1975 by Jalal Talabani , Nawshirwan Mustafa , Fuad Masum , Adel Murad , Ali Askari and Abdul Razaq Feyli Dawood Mohammed Ali . All presidents of Iraq under
SECTION 10
#1732773287362744-610: Is an official language in Iraq. In Syria, on the other hand, publishing materials in Kurdish is forbidden, though this prohibition is not enforced any more due to the Syrian civil war . Before August 2002, the Turkish government placed severe restrictions on the use of Kurdish, prohibiting the language in education and broadcast media. In March 2006, Turkey allowed private television channels to begin airing programming in Kurdish. However,
806-622: Is classified as part of the Zaza–Gorani branch of Indo-Iranian languages. The Zaza language , spoken mainly in Turkey, differs both grammatically and in vocabulary and is generally not understandable by Gorani speakers but it is considered related to Gorani. Almost all Zaza-speaking communities, as well as speakers of the closely related Shabaki dialect spoken in parts of Iraqi Kurdistan , identify themselves as ethnic Kurds. Geoffrey Haig and Ergin Öpengin in their recent study suggest grouping
868-458: Is not a unified language, its many dialects are interrelated and at the same time distinguishable from other Western Iranian languages . The same source classifies different Kurdish dialects as two main groups, northern and central. The average Kurmanji speaker does not find it easy to communicate with the inhabitants of Sulaymaniyah or Halabja . Some linguistic scholars assert that the term "Kurdish" has been applied extrinsically in describing
930-459: Is not recognized in Turkey, and prior to 2013 the use of Kurdish names containing the letters X , W , and Q , which do not exist in the Turkish alphabet , was not allowed. In 2012, Kurdish-language lessons became an elective subject in public schools. Previously, Kurdish education had only been possible in private institutions. In Iran, though it is used in some local media and newspapers, it
992-513: Is not used in public schools. In 2005, 80 Syrian and Iranian Kurds took part in an experiment and gained scholarships to study in Kurdistan Region , Iraq, in their native tongue. In Kyrgyzstan , 96.21% of the Kurdish population speak Kurdish as their native language. In Kazakhstan, the corresponding percentage is 88.7%. Patriotic Union of Kurdistan The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan ( PUK ; Kurdish : یەکێتیی نیشتمانیی کوردستان , romanized : Yekêtîy Nîştimanîy Kurdistan )
1054-461: Is translated to simply mean Kurdish. The Mokriani variety of Sorani is widely spoken in Mokrian. Piranshahr and Mahabad are two principal cities of the Mokrian area. Zaza–Gorani languages , which are spoken by communities in the wider area who identify as ethnic Kurds, are not linguistically classified as Kurdish. Zaza-Gorani is classified as adjunct to Kurdish, although authorities differ in
1116-677: The Kurdish uprising for the rights of the Kurds in northern Iraq was declared against the Baghdad government of Abd al-Karim Qasim , Talabani took charge of the Kirkuk and Silemani battlefronts and organized and led separatist movements in Mawat, Rezan and the Qaradagh regions. In March 1962, he led a coordinated offensive that brought about the liberation of the district of Sharbazher from Iraqi government forces. When not engaged in fighting in
1178-686: The Shatt al-Arab (Arvand Rūd) waterway and Khuzestan , which later became the basis for the Iran–Iraq War . Believing it was time to give a new direction to the Kurdish separatists and to the Kurdish society, Talabani, with a group of Kurdish intellectuals and activists, founded the Kurdish Patriotic Union of Kurdistan ( Yekiaiti Nishtimani Kurdistan ) in 1975. In 1976, he began organizing an armed campaign for Kurdish independence inside Iraqi Kurdistan . From 1977 onwards, he established
1240-715: The 2005 constitution have been from this party. The PUK traces its political heritage to Sulaymaniyah native Ibrahim Ahmad . After the collapse of the Soviet-backed Kurdish Mahabad Republic in Iran in early 1947, Ibrahim Ahmad , previously the Sulaymaniyah representative of the Iranian KDP ( KDP-I ), joined the newly formed Iraqi KDP . Ahmad was a highly influential leftist intellectual, who by 1951 had succeeded in rallying most of
1302-529: The Iraqi Kurdish leftist-nationalists to the new Iraqi KDP, which, in turn, took the opportunity to convene a second Party Congress and duly elect Ahmad as secretary-general (effectively acting Chairman). However, from the very beginning in Iran, Ibrahim Ahmad's leftist politics, "intellectualism", and support for Qazi Muhammad put him at odds with the faction of the KDP loyal to Mustafa Barzani and his traditionalist-conservative tribal support base. It
SECTION 20
#17327732873621364-537: The Kurdish languages into Northern Kurdish, Central Kurdish, Southern Kurdish, Zaza , and Gorani, and avoid the subgrouping Zaza–Gorani. The notable professor Zare Yusupova has carried out a lot of work and research into the Gorani dialect (as well as many other minority/ancient Kurdish dialects). During his stay in Damascus , historian Ibn Wahshiyya came across two books on agriculture written in Kurdish, one on
1426-432: The Kurds of Amadiya . This work is very important in Kurdish history as it is the first acknowledgment of the widespread use of a distinctive Kurdish language. Garzoni was given the title Father of Kurdology by later scholars. The Kurdish language was banned in a large portion of Kurdistan for some time. After the 1980 Turkish coup d'état until 1991 the use of the Kurdish language was illegal in Turkey. Today, Sorani
1488-747: The Kurds speak Kurmanji, and most Kurdish texts are written in Kurmanji and Sorani. Kurmanji is written in the Hawar alphabet , a derivation of the Latin script , and Sorani is written in the Sorani alphabet , a derivation of the Arabic script . A separate group of non-Kurdish Northwestern Iranian languages, the Zaza–Gorani languages , are also spoken by several million ethnic Kurds. The classification of Laki as
1550-453: The March 1970 agreement between the Iraqi government and the Kurdish rebels, Talabani returned to Iraqi Kurdistan, and rejoined the KDP, even though he wouldn't hold an office at the time. The Kurdish separatist movement collapsed in March 1975, after Iran ended their support in exchange for a border agreement with Iraq. This agreement was the 1975 Algiers Agreement , where Iraq gave up claims to
1612-792: The PUK base within Iranian Kurdistan in Nawkhan and another one in Iraqi Kurdistan in Qandil. During the 1980s, Talabani sided with Iran and led a Kurdish struggle from bases inside Iraq until the crackdown against Kurdish separatists from 1987 to 1988. Following the invasion of Kuwait by Iraq in August 1990, he travelled to the United States, in order to offer his services and troops to the United States and raise support for
1674-625: The PUK was announced again in Berlin, and thus it was decided that 1 June is the anniversary date of the founding of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK). The PUK was a coalition of at least five separate political entities, the most significant of which were Talabani and his closest followers, Nawshirwan Mustafa 's clandestine Marxist-Leninist group Komala , and the Kurdistan Socialist Movement (KSM), formed as
1736-480: The PUK was fighting. The PUK harassed Sipay Rizgari's troops and, to a large extent, cut off their supply lines. Since the first Gulf War , the PUK has jointly administered Kurdistan Region with the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP). However, in 1994 the parties engaged in a three-year conflict, known as the Iraqi Kurdish Civil War . The conflict ended with US mediation, and reconciliation
1798-539: The PUK's fourth congress in December 2019, Sheikh Jangi received the most votes for the General Leadership Council. In a compromise, he and Bafel were proclaimed co-presidents. In July 2021, Bafel shut down a media outlet close to Sheikh Jangi and ousted several important commanders from the counter-terrorism and intelligence units of the PUK, who were seen as affiliates of him. Shortly after, Bafel
1860-557: The PUK. But his attempts did not bear the success he expected at the time. In 1991, he helped inspire a renewed effort for Kurdish independence. He negotiated a ceasefire with the Iraqi Ba'athist government that saved the lives of many Kurds and worked closely with the United States, United Kingdom, France and other countries to set up the safe haven in Iraqi Kurdistan. In 1992 the Kurdistan Regional Government
1922-682: The Talabani family. The Talabani lineage has produced many leading social figures including the poet Riza Talabani , his grandfather, Abd al-Karim Qasim prime minister (1958–1963) and former National Democratic Party 's member Hasan Talabani and Mukarram Talabani , a prominent member of the Communist party. Talabani received his elementary and intermediate school education in Koya (Koysanjak) and his high school education in Erbil and Kirkuk . When he
Jalal Talabani - Misplaced Pages Continue
1984-428: The Turkish government said that they must avoid showing children's cartoons , or educational programs that teach Kurdish, and could broadcast only for 45 minutes a day or four hours a week. The state-run Turkish Radio and Television Corporation (TRT) started its 24-hour Kurdish television station on 1 January 2009 with the motto "we live under the same sky". The Turkish prime minister sent a video message in Kurdish to
2046-453: The approximate borders of the areas where the main ethnic core of the speakers of the contemporary Kurdish dialects was formed. The most argued hypothesis on the localisation of the ethnic territory of the Kurds remains D.N. Mackenzie 's theory, proposed in the early 1960s (Mackenzie 1961). Developing the ideas of P. Tedesco (1921: 255) and regarding the common phonetic isoglosses shared by Kurdish, Persian, and Baluchi , Mackenzie concluded that
2108-543: The collapse of the revolt to "the inability of the feudalist, tribalist, bourgeois rightist and capitulationist Kurdish leadership". The PUK's support lies predominantly in the southern part of the Kurdistan Region . During the Iran-Iraq war , the PUK entered into hostilities with the Iranian Kurdish Sipay Rizgari , opposing them due to Sipay Rizgari's close ties to the Iraqi authorities that
2170-498: The country. His state funeral was held on 6 October 2017. Millions turned out across the cities and memorials were held across the globe. Talabani was married to Hero Ibrahim Ahmed , daughter of Ibrahim Ahmed . They had two sons, Bafel and Qubad . Qubad is the deputy prime minister of the Kurdistan Regional Government in Erbil since 2014. His nephew is Lahur Talabany . Kurdish language Ancient Medieval Modern Kurdish ( Kurdî , کوردی )
2232-520: The culture of the vine and the palm tree, and the other on water and the means of finding it out in unknown ground. He translated both from Kurdish into Arabic in the early 9th century AD. Among the earliest Kurdish religious texts is the Yazidi Black Book , the sacred book of Yazidi faith. It is considered to have been authored sometime in the 13th century AD by Hassan bin Adi (b. 1195 AD),
2294-553: The details. groups Kurdish with Zaza Gorani within a "Northwestern I" group, while Glottolog based on Encyclopædia Iranica prefers an areal grouping of "Central dialects" (or "Kermanic") within Northwest Iranic, with Kurdish but not Zaza-Gorani grouped with "Kermanic". Gorani is distinct from Northern and Central Kurdish, yet shares vocabulary with both of them and there are some grammatical similarities with Central Kurdish. The Hawrami dialects of Gorani includes
2356-581: The early and mid-1960s, Talabani undertook numerous diplomatic missions, representing the Kurdish leadership at meetings in Europe and the Middle East. In 1964, he and the Barzani family had a dispute over the direction of the KDP and Talabani left Iraq and settled in Iran. In Iran he purchased weapons without the knowledge of the Barzanis, following which he was expelled from the KDP in summer 1964. After
2418-564: The fact that this usage reflects the sense of ethnic identity and unity among the Kurds. From a linguistic or at least a grammatical point of view, however, Kurmanji and Sorani differ as much from each other as English and German, and it would seem appropriate to refer to them as languages. For example, Sorani has neither gender nor case-endings, whereas Kurmanji has both.... Differences in vocabulary and pronunciation are not as great as between German and English, but they are still considerable. According to Encyclopaedia of Islam , although Kurdish
2480-493: The fifteenth century. From the 15th to 17th centuries, classical Kurdish poets and writers developed a literary language. The most notable classical Kurdish poets from this period were Ali Hariri , Ahmad Khani , Malaye Jaziri and Faqi Tayran . The Italian priest Maurizio Garzoni published the first Kurdish grammar titled Grammatica e Vocabolario della Lingua Kurda in Rome in 1787 after eighteen years of missionary work among
2542-416: The first Ba'ath Party government was deposed in a coup led by Abdul Salam Arif , Mustafa developed a close relationship with Arif. Mulla Mustafa signed an agreement with Arif in his personal capacity, rather than as president of the KDP. This infuriated Ahmad and Jalal Talabani as the agreement omitted any mention of self-administration, let alone autonomy—the whole point for which the Kurds had been fighting
Jalal Talabani - Misplaced Pages Continue
2604-666: The first President elected under the country's new constitution. His office was part of the Presidency Council of Iraq . Nawshirwan Mustafa was Talabani's deputy until Mustafa resigned in 2006 and formed an opposition party called Gorran . He supported Barzani's extended presidency of the Kurdistan Region post-2013. On 18 December 2012, Talabani suffered a stroke and was in intensive care in Baghdad, where his condition eventually stabilized after reports that he
2666-524: The great-grandnephew of Sheikh Adi ibn Musafir (d. 1162), the founder of the faith. It contains the Yazidi account of the creation of the world, the origin of man, the story of Adam and Eve and the major prohibitions of the faith. According to The Cambridge History of the Kurds , "the first proper 'text'" written in Kurdish is a short Christian prayer. It was written in Armenian characters, and dates from
2728-551: The judicial authority on Iraqi elections in Baghdad declared Bafel Talabani the sole leader of the PUK. After that, Sheikh Jangi proceeded to work on founding his own party. His new party, the People's Front received its license from the interior ministry on 17 January 2024 and was joined by several former PUK-members from Lahur's wing. A Co-Presidents are elected by the General Leadership Council. The PUK has 36 branches throughout Iraqi Kurdistan and draws membership from
2790-490: The language the Kurds speak, whereas some ethnic Kurds have used the word term to simply describe their ethnicity and refer to their language as Kurmanji , Sorani , Hewrami , Kermanshahi , Kalhori or whatever other dialect or language they speak. Some historians have noted that it is only recently that the Kurds who speak the Sorani dialect have begun referring to their language as Kurdî , in addition to their identity, which
2852-659: The main Kurdish political parties, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK). He was a prominent member of the Interim Iraq Governing Council , which was established following the overthrow of Saddam Hussein in the 2003 invasion of Iraq . Talabani was an advocate for Kurdish rights and democracy in Iraq for more than 50 years. Talabani was born in Kelkan village into the Koysinjaq branch of
2914-581: The north-west Iranian group". Ludwig Paul concludes that Kurdish seems to be a Northwestern Iranian language in origin, but acknowledges that it shares many traits with Southwestern Iranian languages like Persian , apparently due to longstanding and intense historical contacts. Windfuhr identified Kurdish dialects as Parthian , albeit with a Median substratum. Windfuhr and Frye assume an eastern origin for Kurdish and consider it as related to eastern and central Iranian dialects. The present state of knowledge about Kurdish allows, at least roughly, drawing
2976-665: The opening ceremony, which was attended by Minister of Culture and other state officials. The channel uses the X , W , and Q letters during broadcasting. However, most of these restrictions on private Kurdish television channels were relaxed in September 2009. In 2010, Kurdish municipalities in the southeast began printing marriage certificates , water bills, construction and road signs , as well as emergency, social and cultural notices in Kurdish alongside Turkish. Also Imams began to deliver Friday sermons in Kurdish and Esnaf price tags in Kurdish. Many mayors were tried for issuing public documents in Kurdish language. The Kurdish alphabet
3038-598: The other languages spoken by Kurds in the region including the Gorani language in parts of Iranian Kurdistan and Iraqi Kurdistan. Philip G. Kreyenbroek , an expert writing in 1992, says: Since 1932 most Kurds have used the Roman script to write Kurmanji.... Sorani is normally written in an adapted form of the Arabic script.... Reasons for describing Kurmanji and Sorani as 'dialects' of one language are their common origin and
3100-479: The party, frustrated by widespread tribalism and corruption within the party. He proceeded to found the Gorran movement , which in turn presented itself as an alternative to the corrupt politics of PUK and KDP. After the founder and leader of the PUK, Jalal Talabani , died in 2017, a struggle for the leadership of the party ignited between Jalal's son Bafel Talabani and the then co-president Lahur Sheikh Jangi . On
3162-698: The popular figurehead of the Kurdish people. Mulla Mustafa would accept no dissent, and, fearing for their lives, Ahmad and his followers slipped away at night from a heated discussion with Mulla Mustafa, and retreated back to their stronghold in Mawat, Iraq . At the Sixth Party Congress of the KDP in July 1964, representatives from the Ahmad-Talabani faction were arrested upon arrival. A few days later Mulla Mustafa sent his son, Idris Barzani with
SECTION 50
#17327732873623224-407: The speakers of these three languages may once have been in closer contact. Kurdish varieties are divided into three or four groups, with varying degrees of mutual intelligibility. In historical evolution terms, Kurmanji is less modified than Sorani and Pehlewani in both phonetic and morphological structure. The Sorani group has been influenced by among other things its closer cultural proximity to
3286-586: The two official languages of Iraq and is in political documents simply referred to as "Kurdish". The Kurdish varieties belong to the Iranian branch of the Indo-European family . They are generally classified as Northwestern Iranian languages, or by some scholars as intermediate between Northwestern and Southwestern Iranian. Martin van Bruinessen notes that "Kurdish has a strong South-Western Iranian element", whereas "Zaza and Gurani [...] do belong to
3348-474: The urban intellectual classes of Iraqi Kurdistan upon its establishment, partly due to five of its seven founding members being Ph.D. holders and academics. In the early 1980s, the PUK evolved and broadened its appeal to all sections of Iraqi Kurdish society, especially the rural classes. In 1992, the constituent groups within the PUK merged into a unified political movement that affirmed its social-democratic identity and affiliation. Their communique ascribed
3410-435: Was "well-known in nationalist circles that the relations between the two men Mustafa and Qazi were not easy". Ibrahim Ahmad was soon joined by up-and-coming intellectual and socialist Jalal Talabani . Barzani and Ahmad were known to dislike each other. But while each wanted to reduce the others' influence in the KDP, each also knew that the other was indispensable in securing the loyalty of their respective support-bases. When
3472-690: Was a member of the Iraqi Governing Council which negotiated the Transitional Administrative Law (TAL), Iraq's interim constitution. The TAL governed all politics in Iraq and the process of writing and adopting the final constitution. Talabani was elected President of Iraq on 6 April 2005, by the Iraqi National Assembly and sworn into office the following day. On 22 April 2006, Talabani began his second term as President of Iraq, becoming
3534-411: Was declared the sole leader of the party. In November, Lahur Sheikh Jangi was expelled from the PUK along a few others and Bafel took full control over the party's finances. Sheikh Jangi filed a lawsuit against the expulsion. In February 2023, a court in Erbil ruled, that the ouster from the co-presidency was contradicted PUK's internal regulation and reinstated him. A day after however, on 21 February,
3596-521: Was eventually achieved. In September 2001, the Islamist group Jund al-Islam (the Army of Islam) massacred 43 PUK members. Originally a centre-left party opposing the conservative tribalism of the Kurdistan Democratic Party , the PUK developed into a similarly tribalistic vehicle for the political ambitions of Jalal Talabani and his family. In 2009, influential PUK politician Nawshirwan Mustafa left
3658-420: Was founded. He was also supportive of peace negotiations between the Kurdistan Workers' Party and Turkey, and was also present as Abdullah Öcalan announced the ceasefire of the PKK on 17 March and prolonged it indefinitely on 16 April 1993. He was given a Turkish passport by the then-president Turgut Özal in 1992 in order to help Talabani travel freely. He returned the passport in 2003. Talabani pursued
3720-431: Was in a coma. A statement on the President's official website said that he was being treated for blocked arteries . On 20 December, Talabani's condition had improved enough to allow travel to Germany for treatment. The head of Talabani's medical team in Iraq has been Governor Najmiddin Karim . On 19 July 2014, Jalal Talabani returned to Iraq after more than 18 months of medical treatment. Due to his absence from politics, as
3782-416: Was in his teens, Talabani's peers began referring to him as "Mam" Jalal, as 'mam' meaning "paternal uncle" in Kurdish , and the Kurds have called him by this affectionate name ever since. In 1953, he began to study law at the Baghdad University . He had to flee into exile in Syria in 1956, in order to prevent an arrest for being involved In activities of the Kurdish Students Union. Residing in Damascus , he
SECTION 60
#17327732873623844-404: Was involved in the establishment the Kurdistan Democratic Party of Syria (KDPS). He later returned to Iraq and gained a degree in 1959. After completing his studies at the Baghdad University, he entered the Iraqi Army , where he served shortly as a tank unit commander. In the early 1960s, he was made the head of the Polit bureau of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP). When in September 1961,
#361638