Özdemir Pasha

Özdemir Pasha (died 1560, Habesh Eyalet was a Mamluk general for the Ottoman Empire, of Kumyk Turkic or Circassian descent. He joined Hadım Süleyman Pasha's campaign to India in 1538 (see Ottoman naval expeditions in the Indian Ocean). Later he became the Ottoman governor of Yemen and invaded Nubia and Abyssinia. He fell ill while campaigning in Abyssinia and died in Debarwa in November, 1560.

Campaigns in Yemen In 1546 Üveys Pasha captured Ta’izz, however he was assassinated by his own men and Özdemir Pasha seized power. He captured Sana’a in 1547 and managed to capture Sa’da in 1548.

He was unable to defeat Mutahhar at Thula in 1552, however managed to sign an agreement in which Mutahhar recognised Ottoman suzerainty and maintained authority over Kawkaban and Thula. He succeeded in capturing the Dehlek Islands. In July 1555 he was appointed as governor of the newly established Abyssinian province. He also seized Zeila, which was captured from the Portuguese. In 1559 he defeated Bahr Negash Yeshaq and conquered Debarwa.

He died in 1560 and was buried in a tomb in a mosque in Massawa. A new province, Berberistan, was thereby established.