Jalal Talabani (November 12, 1933 – October 3, 2017) was a prominent Iraqi Kurdish politician, lawyer, and jurist. Born in the village of Kelekân near Dukan in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, he studied law at the University of Baghdad, graduating in 1959. He began his political career early through the Kurdistan Students' Union and the Kurdish nationalist movement, initially rising within the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) under Mustafa Barzani. In 1975, he split from the KDP to co-found the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) with Nawshirwan Mustafa, establishing it as a major force advocating for Kurdish autonomy and rights within Iraq. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Talabani led the PUK in armed struggles against Saddam Hussein's regime, enduring exile after the 1975 Kurdish uprising collapsed. He played a key role in international lobbying, including supporting the Iraq Liberation Act of 1998 to garner U.S. backing against Saddam. Following the 2003 U.S.-led invasion, Talabani served as president of the Iraqi Governing Council in 2003 and was subsequently elected President of Iraq from 2005 to 2014. As president, he worked to bridge divides between Kurds, Arabs, and other groups, promoting national unity while advancing Kurdish interests, including the establishment of the Kurdistan Regional Government. He was also a fellow member of the Iraqi opposition coalition. Known affectionately as "Mam Jalal" among Kurds, he left a legacy as a unifying figure in Iraqi politics, although his tenure faced ongoing tensions between the PUK and KDP, as well as criticisms over corruption allegations within the PUK and his balancing act in Iraq's fractious post-Saddam political landscape.