Kurdish patriot Osman Turgay has died of Covid-19 in Mannheim.  The 75-year-old Kurdish man, who enjoyed great popularity among Mannheim's Kurds with his nickname "Apê Osman", was found dead in his apartment on April 9.

"Apê Osman visited the Kurdish association for one last time on March 13. He looked visibly stricken and said that he was not feeling well. Three days later we had to close the centre because of coronavirus. Since then, our directors tried several times to reach him. The last time we went to his flat was last Wednesday when his neighbours told us that he had passed away," said Cano Yıldız from the Kurdish Community Centre (DTKM).

The body of Osman Turgay is said to be in the forensic department. It is unclear where the single man will be buried, said Yıldız. "We are deeply saddened by this loss. All Kurds from Mannheim knew and appreciated Apê Osman. As sad as the news of his death is, so was his former life".

Osman Turgay was born in 1945 in Ömerli district of Mardin. As a young man he went to work in Lebanon. After the outbreak of the Lebanese civil war in 1975, he stayed there for another three years, then went to Germany. His relatives assumed that he had died in Lebanon. "They were shocked when we informed them of Apê Osman's death," says Yıldız.

Osman Turgay went through profound traumatic experiences in early childhood. "When his father died, his mother was wanted to be married to her brother-in-law. She then fled to her family in Qamishlo in northern Syria but had to leave her son behind. Apê Osman's paternal uncles were violent and often beat him up. He was ten or maybe a little older when he set off all alone to visit his mother in Qamishlo. When he arrived, he had to realize that it was his mother's wedding day. They then moved away and settled in Aleppo. Later he went to Lebanon. After a while, he tried to get a foothold again in Mardin. However, he found that a brother had confiscated his share of his father's estate. Therefore he returned to Lebanon where he stayed until the civil war erupted. He then went to Germany and lived there for almost 40 years. He was a frequenter of the Kurdish association in Mannheim since 1994. Apê Osman was present at every event and an ideological supporter of Abdullah Öcalan's philosophy. He was a fervent patriot, his death is a great loss for us. We will miss him," said Yıldız.