- published: 03 Feb 2013
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Abdi İpekçi (9 August 1929 – 1 February 1979) was a Turkish journalist, intellectual and an activist for human rights. He was murdered while editor-in-chief of the Turkish daily newspaper Milliyet.
İpekçi was born in Istanbul, Turkey. After finishing high school at Galatasaray High School in 1948, he attended law school at Istanbul University for a while. He started his professional career as a sports reporter for the newspaper Yeni Sabah, and transferred later to Yeni İstanbul. In 1954, he joined the newspaper Milliyet as its publishing manager, and was promoted to editor-in-chief in 1959.
A respected journalist, he was a proponent of the separation of religion and state, and an advocate of dialogue and conciliation with Greece, as well as of human rights for the various minorities in Turkey.
On 1 February 1979, two members of the ultra-nationalist Grey Wolves, Oral Çelik and Mehmet Ali Ağca (who later shot pope John Paul II), murdered Abdi İpekçi in his car on the way back home from his office in front of his apartment building in Istanbul. Ağca was caught due to an informant and was sentenced to life in prison. After serving six months in a military prison in Istanbul, Ağca escaped with the help of the Grey Wolves and fled to Bulgaria, which was then a base of operation for the Turkish mafia.
Abdi is an Arabic male name or compound word, that is related to Abdul.
Abdi is often used as part of a Muslim name meaning servant. Abdi is then followed by one of the Names of God in Islam, signifying servant of God. Each of the names of Allah are adjectives describing Him. For example, Abdi-Fatah would mean the Servant of the Opener. The name is especially common in Somalia, India and Iran. Its also used by Arab Christians, for example using names such as Abdul Masih, meaning servant of the messiah.
Abdi is also the name of three men in the Hebrew Bible
Actors: Halil Ergün (actor), Kutay Köktürk (actor), Salih Kalyon (actor), Nur Sürer (actress), Ismail Kalkan (editor), Zülfü Livaneli (composer), Berhan Simsek (actor), Reis Çelik (actor), Fuat Onan (actor), Sabahattin Cetin (producer), Sabahattin Cetin (writer), Oguzhan Tercan (writer), Oguzhan Tercan (director), Ayfer Gür (actress),
Genres: Drama,