Origins & Early Life

Deniz Gezmiş (Turkish pronunciation: [deˈniz ɟezˈmiʃ], 27 February 1947 – 6 May 1972) was a Turkish Marxist-Leninist revolutionary, student leader, and political activist in Turkey in the late 1960s. He was one of the founding members of the People's Liberation Army of Turkey (THKO). He was born to an inspector of primary education and syndicalist Cemil Gezmiş and a primary school teacher Mukaddes Gezmiş. He was educated in various Turkish cities.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

He spent most of his childhood in Sivas, where his father grew up. He graduated from high school in Istanbul where he first encountered left wing ideas. Gezmiş and companions are considered by some as "Turkey's Che Guevara and compañeros", whereas other right-wing figures consider him a terrorist. Gezmiş reported that Yön magazine had very significant effects on his adoption of socialism. After joining the Workers Party of Turkey (Turkish: Türkiye İşçi Partisi), he studied law at Istanbul University in 1966.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

In the summer of 1968, he and around 15 other students founded the Revolutionary Student Union (Turkish: Devrimci Öğrenci Birliği). He also founded the Revolutionary Jurists Organisation (Turkish: Devrimci Hukukçular...

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• 1972 Historical Timeline & Archive — Explore world events and figures from 1972
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