Overview

This book examines the impact of applying the “terrorist” label to a group’s choice to resort to violence within an ethnonationalist conflict. Using the Partiya Karkerên Kurdistanê (PKK) in Türkiye as a primary case study, the book interrogates the socio-political ramifications of the Turkish government’s decision to label the PKK as a terrorist organisation. Drawing on longitudinal interviews, newly opened Turkish and Kurdish archives, media frame databases, and casualty logs, it maps five decisive moments: the 1984 guerrilla launch; Abdullah Öcalan’s 1999 arrest; the 2012–2015 peace talks; Kobani’s stand against ISIS in 2015 in a town in Syria; and the 2025 stand down. Furthermore, the study’s empirical analysis and discussions reveal that the invocation of the label “terrorist” against the PKK places the group’s actors and sympathisers in a situation that makes it harder for them to engage in peaceful means of resolving the conflict. Using four waves of interviews with Kurds in Türkiye and Syria spanning over a decade, the book offers dynamic insights into how attitudes towards the PKK and the “terrorist” label have shifted over time. This book will be of interest to students and scholars of terrorism and political violence, ethnic conflict, critical security studies, and international relations.

Full Product Details

9781041109006

Table of Contents

Reviews

‘In this groundbreaking study, Muhanad Seloom […] traces more than three decades of conflict between the Turkish state and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) to reveal the far-reaching power of a single word. Drawing on unprecedented access to archives, media databases, and over a decade of interviews with Kurdish voices across Türkiye and Syria, this book shows how the label “terrorist” reshaped strategies, silenced dialogue, and trapped generations in cycles of violence. From the PKK’s 1984 insurgency to its self-dissolution in 2025, Seloom charts decisive moments that defined the trajectory of one of the world’s most intractable conflicts. He unpacks how labels travel through governments, media, and international institutions, shaping not just state policies but everyday lives—stigmatising whole communities, radicalising identities, and closing off pathways to peace. At once deeply human and rigorously analytical, this book challenges readers to rethink what we mean when we say “terrorism” and to see how words themselves can escalate wars—or help end them. Perfect for students, scholars, policymakers, and anyone seeking to understand the politics of naming, this work is both a timely case study and a call for reimagining how we confront violence, identity, and the pursuit of peace.” Cyndi Banks, Professor Emeritus of Criminology, Northern Arizona University Deputy Vice Chancellor, Arden University, London

Author Information

Muhanad Seloom is Assistant Professor of Critical Security Studies at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies, Qatar. He is also a researcher with the Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies and Honorary Research Fellow at the University of Exeter.

Tab Content 6

Countries Available