İsmail Beşikçi Speaks to Kurdistan24 for First Time Since Illness
In his first appearance since his illness, Dr. İsmail Beşikçi thanked Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani for repeatedly supporting him during his prolonged illness as his recovery continues in Istanbul.
ERBIL (Kurdistan24) - Renowned Turkish sociologist and writer Dr. İsmail Beşikçi has spoken to Kurdistan24 for the first time since a prolonged illness, thanking Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani for repeatedly following his condition and providing support during months of treatment.
Beşikçi, one of the most prominent Turkish intellectuals associated with the study and defense of Kurdish rights, said he was grateful for the prime minister's concern throughout his illness.
"I am very happy and grateful for his concern," Beşikçi told Kurdistan24.
He added that Prime Minister Barzani had provided significant assistance and repeatedly sought updates on his condition.
"Masrour Barzani provided tremendous support during my illness," Beşikçi said. "He asked about my condition many times."
He also thanked others who had sent messages or expressed concern for his recovery.
Recovery continues in Istanbul
İbrahim Gürbüz, president of the İsmail Beşikçi Foundation, told Kurdistan24 that the 87-year-old scholar had undergone an extended period of medical care before being transferred to Istanbul.
According to Gürbüz, Beşikçi spent nearly a month and a half at Dicle Hospital before receiving approximately 10 months of further treatment at physician Cenap Ekinci's clinic in Diyarbakır.
"We have now brought Beşikçi to Istanbul," Gürbüz said.
He explained that a team of physicians continues to monitor Beşikçi regularly and that a medical panel assesses his condition once every month.
Gürbüz, who said he has been Beşikçi's friend for 37 years, is personally assisting with his daily care.
Physiotherapist and osteopath Dr. İbrahim Mayda, who visits Beşikçi weekly, told Kurdistan24 that his condition is continuing to improve.
Mayda also emphasized Beşikçi's longstanding place in Kurdish intellectual and political history.
"İsmail Beşikçi has done a great deal for the Kurds and made personal sacrifices for this cause," Mayda said.
Barzani followed condition from outset
Prime Minister Barzani had publicly expressed concern for Beşikçi shortly after the scholar suffered a cerebral hemorrhage while attending the FilmAmed Documentary Film Festival in Diyarbakır on Sept. 27, 2025.
Kurdistan24 reported at the time that Barzani contacted the İsmail Beşikçi Foundation directly, requested an update on his health and offered assistance with his medical treatment.
Gürbüz subsequently told Kurdistan24 that Beşikçi's brain hemorrhage had stopped and that his condition was improving.
The latest interview marks a significant stage in his recovery, coming after months of treatment and rehabilitation.
Decades devoted to studying the Kurdish question
Born in 1939, Beşikçi developed a distinctive place in modern Turkish intellectual life through decades of research and writing on Kurdish society, identity and state policies toward the Kurds.
Academic researcher Deniz Duruiz, writing for the Middle East Research and Information Project, has described Beşikçi as the first social scientist in Türkiye to systematically examine Kurdish oppression through his theory of Kurdistan as an "international colony."
His work challenged official state narratives that denied or minimized a distinct Kurdish identity and placed questions of language, territory, political rights and state power at the center of scholarly debate.
That work also brought severe personal consequences.
Beşikçi was repeatedly prosecuted and imprisoned in Türkiye over his writings and statements. Agence France-Presse reported that by his release in 1999, he had spent approximately 19 years in prison while facing numerous additional sentences linked to his intellectual work.
Scholar Bülent Küçük, writing in Jadaliyya, has also examined Beşikçi's arguments concerning institutional discrimination and the denial of Kurdish identity in the Turkish republican system.
Despite being ethnically Turkish himself, Beşikçi became one of the best-known non-Kurdish intellectual advocates of Kurdish rights and a deeply respected figure across Kurdish society.
His latest message therefore carries significance beyond a personal health update.
After a difficult period of illness and rehabilitation, Beşikçi used his first interview with Kurdistan24 to acknowledge those who stood by him, particularly Prime Minister Masrour Barzani and the Kurdistan Region, while his doctors and longtime associates reported continued progress in his recovery.