Peregraf
Sirri Sureyya Onder, a veteran Kurdish politician, and a leading voice in Turkey’s complex journey toward peace with the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), has passed away at the age of 62. His party confirmed his death on Saturday following complications from a heart attack and major surgery in Istanbul.
Onder was widely recognized not only for his sharp intellect and cultural contributions, but also for his critical role in facilitating dialogue between the Turkish state and Kurdish political movements during some of the most pivotal moments in recent decades. His death comes at a sensitive time, as new efforts to rekindle peace talks are cautiously emerging.
Officials across the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, including Prime Minister Masrour Barzani, Deputy Prime Minister Qubad Talabani, and various political parties, expressed deep sorrow over the loss. Many acknowledged Onder’s legacy as a rare bridge-builder in a region fractured by conflict.
Serving as deputy speaker of the Turkish parliament and a member of the pro-Kurdish DEM Party, Onder was one of a handful of MPs who recently visited imprisoned PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan. Just last week, he held discussions with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in what some observers described as a tentative re-engagement between the state and Kurdish representatives, aimed at ending the decades-long armed conflict that has claimed tens of thousands of lives.
Onder had been hospitalized for nearly three weeks after suffering a heart attack and aortic rupture. Though he initially survived after an extensive 12-hour surgery, he remained in intensive care for 18 days before succumbing to multiple organ failure.
Beyond politics, Onder was deeply immersed in the arts. Known for his poetic voice and piercing humor, he was an acclaimed screenwriter and director, whose films blended the personal with the political and offered poignant social critique.
His involvement in peace efforts stretched back over a decade, including a key role in mediating the PKK’s unilateral ceasefire in March of this year. Earlier in his career, he acted as an intermediary during previous negotiations between Erdogan’s government and Kurdish representatives.
Onder’s political career was not without controversy. In 2018, he was jailed over a speech deemed to promote terrorism and later stood trial in connection with the Kobani protests. However, parliamentary immunity shielded him from further detention.
His passing leaves a significant void in the Kurdish political movement and in broader efforts toward reconciliation in Turkey. For many, Sirri Sureyya Onder was more than a politician—he was a cultural force and a steadfast believer in the power of dialogue, even in the most fractured of times.