PKK accuses Turkish government of undermining disarmament effort
But Mustafa Karasu, one of the group's founders and top leaders, told a Kurdish-linked television station that "a group at the heart of the state is seeking to sabotage the process". "We are ready, but it is the (Turkish) government that has not taken the needed steps," he said. Karasu cited continued Turkish military strikes on PKK positions in northern Irak as well as the lack of improvement in the prison conditions of the PKK's founder Abdullah Ocalan.
Ocalan, now 76, has been held at the Imrali island jail since 1999. In February, he called on the PKK to lay down its weapons after decades of conflict with the Turkish state that has left at least 45,000 people dead. "Some friends have gone to Imrali, but it's not enough. The isolation has lasted for 26 years," despite some adjustments, Karasu said. "The situation of our leader affects the process and slows it down," he said.
Karasu did not confirm if any disarmament ceremonies were still planned. "We want the process to continue and flourish. But the situation leads us to observe a blockage. The government's attitude is the cause," he said.
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France 24
a day ago
- France 24
PKK leader accuses Turkish government of 'seeking to sabotage' disarmament process
The Kurdish PKK group on Wednesday said that some elements of the Turkish government are seeking to undermine a historic disarmament process meant to put an end to decades of conflict. The PKK, or Kurdistan Workers' Party, in May declared an end to its armed conflict and was expected to hold a series of ceremonies to destroy its weapons. But Mustafa Karasu, one of the group's founders and top leaders, told a Kurdish-linked television station that "a group at the heart of the state is seeking to sabotage the process". "We are ready, but it is the (Turkish) government that has not taken the needed steps," he said. Karasu cited continued Turkish military strikes on PKK positions in northern Irak as well as the lack of improvement in the prison conditions of the PKK's founder Abdullah Ocalan. Ocalan, now 76, has been held at the Imrali island jail since 1999. In February, he called on the PKK to lay down its weapons after decades of conflict with the Turkish state that has left at least 45,000 people dead. 01:51 "Some friends have gone to Imrali, but it's not enough. The isolation has lasted for 26 years," despite some adjustments, Karasu said. "The situation of our leader affects the process and slows it down," he said. Karasu did not confirm if any disarmament ceremonies were still planned. "We want the process to continue and flourish. But the situation leads us to observe a blockage. The government's attitude is the cause," he said.
France 24
2 days ago
- France 24
Thailand set for another acting PM after cabinet reshuffle
The Southeast Asian nation's top office was plunged into turmoil on Tuesday when the Constitutional Court suspended Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra pending an ethics probe which could take months. Power passed to transport minister and deputy prime minister Suriya Jungrungreangkit who took office for only one full day, as the bombshell was dropped in an awkward interim ahead of the reshuffle. When former defence minister Phumtham Wechayachai is sworn into his new position as interior minister he will also take on a deputy prime minister role outranking Suriya's -- thus becoming the acting premier. Before Paetongtarn was ousted she assigned herself the role of culture minister in the new cabinet, meaning she is set to keep a perch in the upper echelons of power. The revolving door of leadership comes as the kingdom is battling to revive a spluttering economy and secure a US trade deal averting Donald Trump's looming threat of a 36 percent tariff. Phumtham is considered a loyal lieutenant to the suspended Paetongtarn and her father Thaksin Shinawatra, the powerful patriarch of a dynasty which has dominated Thai 21st-century politics. Thaksin-linked parties have been jousting with the pro-military, pro-conservative establishment since the early 2000s, but analysts say the family's political brand has now entered decline. The 71-year-old Phumtham earned the nickname "Big Comrade" for his association to a left-wing youth movement of the 1970s, but transitioned to politics through a role in Thaksin's telecoms empire. In previous cabinets he held the defence and commerce portfolios, and spent a spell as acting prime minister after a crisis engulfed the top office last year. Paetongtarn has been hobbled over a longstanding territorial dispute between Thailand and Cambodia, which boiled over into cross-border clashes in May, killing one Cambodian soldier. When she made a diplomatic call to Cambodian ex-leader Hun Sen, she called him "uncle" and referred to a Thai military commander as her "opponent", according to a leaked recording causing widespread backlash. A conservative party abandoned her ruling coalition -- sparking the cabinet reshuffle -- accusing her of kowtowing to Cambodia and undermining the military. The Constitutional Court said there was "sufficient cause to suspect" Paetongtarn breached ministerial ethics in the diplomatic spat.
LeMonde
2 days ago
- LeMonde
Turkey: New wave of arrests targets main opposition party
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