Istanbul - The jailed Kurdish guerrilla leader, Mr Abdullah Ocalan, said yesterday in a statement released by his defence team that a ceasefire call which he made last year would form the basis of his defence when he is tried in a Turkish court on treason charges.
It was the first statement released by Mr Ocalan since he was arrested last month by Turkey after being seized by special forces in Kenya. He faces a possible death penalty on treason charges for orchestrating a 14-year-old armed fight by Kurdish rebels for self-rule in south-east Turkey. However Turkey's military, in an apparent response to the statement, said that it "would never negotiate" with Mr Ocalan.
Turkish gendarmerie police yesterday detained 60 university students in the east of the country in a protest in favour of Mr Ocalan.