Turkish prosecutors have formally asked for the death penalty to be imposed on the Kurdish rebel leader, Abdullah Ocalan.

The request is contained in a one-hundred-and-thirty-five-page indictment which blames Mr Ocalan for organizing fifteen years of separatist violence in south-eastern Turkey.

It holds him personally responsible for acts carried out by his armed group, the Kurdistan Workers' Party or PKK.

Mr Ocalan was captured by the Turkish authorities in February while under the protection of Greek diplomats in Kenya and is being held in prison on an island near Istanbul.

His trial -- on charges of treason and crimes against the Turkish state -- is expected to get underway after prosecutors submit the indictment to the state security court at the end of this month.