Nizamettin Taş

Nizamettin Taş (born 1961), also known as Botan Rojhilat , was one of the oldest military commanders of the PKK. He was born in Varto, Turkey and joined the PKK in 1986 and became the military commander of the organisation in 1995. He headed the People's Liberation Army of Kurdistan, the military wing of the PKK and was a member of the PKK Central Committee. He also served in the PKK's Presidency Council. When Abdullah Öcalan was arrested in 1999, he backed Cemil Bayek against Abdullah Öcalan's brother Osman Öcalan. He left the PKK in the early 2000s, when he rejected violence and formed the non-violent Patriotic Democratic Party (PWD) and often criticizes the PKK's leadership. He currently lives in Iraqi Kurdistan.