Europe has worked hard to put considerable distance between itself and the Kurds. There have been condemnations of Turkey's violent, repressive policies toward its Kurdish minority, but sensitivities about Ankara's strategic role in European defense and concerns about the reaction of the 1 million Kurds scattered throughout Western Europe have encouraged European Union members to shy away from any real involvement in the conflict. So when, four months ago, Italy arrested Mr. Abdullah Ocalan, leader of the Kurdistan Workers Party (a militant independence movement better known as the PKK), Germany refused to request his extradition despite the presence of several outstanding warrants, for fear that it would trigger unrest among the 2 million Turks and Kurds living in the country. Italy's reluctance to keep Mr. Ocalan, and the unwillingness of other countries to offer him shelter, forced the guerrilla leader to take a four-month odyssey in search of safe haven.

That journey ended earlier this week, when the Kenyan government arrested Mr. Ocalan and sent him to Turkey, where he faces charges of terrorism, treason and separatism, and a possible death penalty. The circumstances of the arrest are murky. What is known is that he had been staying at the Greek Embassy in Nairobi for nearly two weeks before his arrest. His capture ended the search for Mr. Ocalan, as well as Europe's hope of maintaining its distance from the Kurdish dispute. When the news broke, Kurdish activists staged protests across Europe, occupying embassies and consulates, and taking hostages. A number of demonstrators set themselves on fire, while others threatened self-immolation.

To the Turkish government, Mr. Ocalan is a terrorist, plain and simple. The 14-year war his group has fought with Ankara has claimed nearly 30,000 lives and blackened Turkey's international image. The PKK has attacked Turkish targets across Europe: In addition to military, diplomatic and commercial facilities, it has also zeroed in on tourist sites. Yet, to many, if not most, of the 12 million Kurds in Turkey, Mr. Ocalan is a freedom fighter, trying to save his people from assimilation and destruction. The PKK was formed to protect and promote the Kurdish identity, but the organization quickly took up the armed struggle and began the bloody civil war that continues to this day.