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France 24
11-07-2025
- Politics
- France 24
Kurdish PKK fighters to begin disarming at key ceremony
The disarmament ceremony marks a turning point in the transition of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) from armed insurgency to democratic politics, as part of a broader effort to draw a line under one of the region's longest-running conflicts. Founded in the late 1970s by Abdullah Ocalan, the PKK took up arms in 1984, beginning a string of bloody attacks on Turkish soil that sparked a conflict that cost more than 40,000 lives. But more than four decades on, the PKK in May announced its dissolution, saying it would pursue a democratic struggle to defend the rights of the Kurdish minority in line with a historic call by Ocalan, who has been serving a life sentence in Turkey since 1999. Friday's ceremony was to take place during the morning at an undisclosed location in the mountains of Iraqi Kurdistan -- where most of the PKK's fighters have been holed up for the past decade -- near the northeastern city of Sulaimaniyah. Although there were limited details about the ceremony, a PKK source told AFP around 30 fighters would destroy their weapons and then return to the mountains. "As a gesture of goodwill, a number of PKK fighters, who took part in fighting Turkish forces in recent years, will destroy or burn their weapons in a ceremony," a PKK commander told AFP on July 1, speaking on condition of anonymity. 'Power of politics' The move is a key step in the months-long indirect negotiations between Ocalan and Ankara that began in October with the blessing of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and have been facilitated by Turkey's pro-Kurdish DEM party. Among those expected to attend the ceremony were several DEM lawmakers, who arrived in Sulaimaniyah on Thursday, and a handful of journalists. It was not clear whether the ceremony would be broadcast live. "I believe in the power of politics and social peace, not weapons. And I urge you to put this principle into practice," Ocalan said in a video message released on Wednesday, pledging that the disarmament process would be "implemented swiftly". Erdogan said peace efforts with the Kurds would gain momentum after the PKK began laying down its weapons. "The process will gain a little more speed when the terrorist organisation starts to implement its decision to lay down arms," he said at the weekend. "We hope this auspicious process will end successfully as soon as possible, without mishaps or sabotage attempts," he added on Wednesday. In recent months, the PKK has taken several historic steps, starting with a ceasefire and culminating in its formal dissolution announced on May 12. The shift followed an appeal on February 27 by Ocalan, who has spent the past 26 years in solitary confinement on Imrali prison island near Istanbul.
Al Arabiya
01-07-2025
- Politics
- Al Arabiya
Kurdish PKK fighters to destroy weapons in ‘goodwill' act: Commanders
Fighters from the Kurdistan Workers' Party will soon destroy their weapons as a 'goodwill gesture' to signal their commitment to disarming after decades of conflict with Turkey, two commanders said. The planned disarmament marks a turning point in the militant group's transition from armed insurgency to political negotiation, as part of a broader effort to end one of the region's longest-running conflicts. The group declared an end to its armed campaign in May -- a conflict that has claimed more than 40,000 lives since 1984 and long strained Turkey's relations with its Kurdish population and regional neighbors. 'As a gesture of goodwill, a number of PKK fighters, who had taken part in fighting Turkish forces in recent years, will destroy or burn their weapons in a ceremony in the coming days,' the commander said, requesting anonymity because he is not authorized to speak to the media. The move was confirmed by another commander who also spoke to AFP on condition of anonymity. The Kurdistan Workers' Party -- widely known by its Kurdish initials PKK -- has led a decades-long armed campaign for Kurdish rights in Turkey and is considered a terrorist organization by Ankara and its Western allies. Representatives of political parties, local observers and the media will attend the ceremony, which will take place in the autonomous Kurdistan region in northern Iraq. The commander said the PKK had yet to decide on the exact number of fighters -- men and women -- who would disarm, the location and the timing of the event. In recent months, the PKK has taken several historic steps, starting with a ceasefire and culminating in its formal dissolution announced on May 12. The shift followed an appeal by its founder Abdullah Ocalan, delivered in a letter from Imrali prison, on an island south of Istanbul, where he has been held in solitary confinement since 1999. The first commander said a new statement from Ocalan was expected soon. A delegation from the pro-Kurdish Turkish DEM party, which has played a key role in facilitating contacts between Ocalan and Ankara, is expected to meet Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan next week before visiting Ocalan in prison. Most of the PKK's fighters have spent the past decade in the mountains of northern Iraq, where Turkey also maintains military bases and has carried out frequent operations against Kurdish fighters. Until now, there has been little detail about how the dissolution mechanism would work but Ankara has said it would carefully monitor the process to ensure full implementation.
Japan Times
26-05-2025
- Politics
- Japan Times
The sudden death of Kurdish separatism in Turkey
The world's longest-running armed insurgency has come to an abrupt end. Some four decades after orchestrating its first attack against Turkish government targets, the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) has decided to disband and disarm, it was announced earlier this month. The decision marks a turning point not only for Turkey, but for the entire Middle East. Since its founding in the late 1970s by the now-jailed Abdullah Ocalan, the PKK was motivated primarily by the goal of establishing an independent Kurdish state, while also seeking to secure political rights for the Kurdish minority in Turkey. But several factors, both domestic and international, have apparently convinced its leaders to abandon violence. Begin with the domestic political situation. As a two-term president, Erdogan has made clear that he hopes to seek a third mandate, meaning that he has to find a way to amend Turkey's Constitution or to convince Parliament to back an early election bill. In either case, success would require him to secure more support than his ruling coalition, comprising his Justice and Development Party and the far-right Nationalist Movement Party, can provide. But Turkey's third-largest party, the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM), can deliver the missing votes. The objective of enrolling DEM in the parliamentary effort to amend the constitution paved the way for the 'Kurdish opening,' designed to enhance the political and cultural rights of Turkey's Kurds. The quid pro quo was the dismantling of the PKK and an end to its terrorist campaign against the Turkish state. The PKK's decision to disband was also influenced by international developments, which had placed the group under severe pressure. Last December, Syrian President Bashar Assad — who had used the PKK as a tool to undermine Turkey — was ousted and the new Syrian regime could not be counted on to support Kurdish efforts to destabilize Turkey. The United States, too, is distancing itself from the PKK affiliates that once played a leading role in the fight against the Islamic State. Whereas former U.S. President Joe Biden's administration offered near unconditional support to U.S.-allied Kurdish groups, such as the Syrian Democratic Forces, Donald Trump believes that U.S. national interests — not least political stability in Syria — are better served by strengthening ties with Turkey. A final, less-discussed factor shaping the PKK's calculations was Turkey's growing use of drone technology to strengthen border security and, more importantly, to target senior PKK commanders outside of Turkey — even deep in Iraqi territory. As this significantly weakened the PKK's logistical and operational effectiveness, it likely prompted a fundamental reassessment of the insurgency's prospects. This combination of factors has created a window of opportunity for Turkey to resolve the Kurdish issue without the kind of violent campaign that fuels radicalization. But a successful transition from an era of armed struggle to one of peace and integration will require Erdoğan's government to deliver on two fronts. The first is transparency. The PKK's long history of violence has understandably generated deep animosity within Turkish society. It is thus essential that the contents of negotiations between the PKK and the Turkish government — including the relevant trade-offs — are communicated clearly and openly. For example, a major consideration will be whether PKK-affiliated entities like the People's Protection Units in Syria will also disarm. Parliament — and, in particular, the main opposition parties within it — must play a central role in guiding this sensitive process. The second front is democracy. This historic opening cannot succeed without genuine democratic reform, including credible steps to safeguard judicial independence and enhance freedom of speech and association. Erdogan's government could secure quick wins in this area by complying with recent rulings from the European Court of Human Rights, including its demand to release Kurdish political leader Selahattin Demirtas. At a time when Ocalan could be released, Turkey's government would also do well to address the conditions faced by other political detainees, such as Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu and Umit Ozdag, who leads the ultranationalist Victory Party. The dismantling of the PKK presents a historic opportunity to build a better Turkey. Safeguarding the country's newfound freedom from PKK terrorism requires strengthening its democracy more broadly. Beyond helping Turkey, such an initiative would demonstrate to violent actors across the Middle East that the end of political insurgencies can lead to lasting and inclusive peace. Sinan Ulgen, a former Turkish diplomat, is director of EDAM, an Istanbul-based think tank and a senior policy fellow at Carnegie Europe.© Project Syndicate, 2025
Fox News
12-05-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
Kurdish militant group PKK to disband after four-decade insurgency against Turkey
The Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) announced on Monday that it will disband and disarm following its more than four-decade insurgency against the Turkish state that has resulted in the deaths of over 40,000 people at the hands of PKK militants and Turkey's military. The PKK has sought to create an independent Kurdish state on Turkish soil, where the Kurds make up some 20% of Turkey's 86 million population. The U.S., the European Union and Turkey have classified the PKK as a terrorist organization. In its statement, the PKK said, according to a Reuters report, it "has completed its historic mission," which over the years shifted to seeking greater Kurdish rights and limited autonomy in southeast Turkey, rather than an independent state. "The PKK struggle has broken the policy of denial and annihilation of our people and brought the Kurdish issue to a point of solving it through democratic politics," it said on the Firat news website, which showed images of senior PKK members attending the congress in fighter fatigues. Turkey will take necessary measures to ensure smooth progress toward a "terror-free" country after the PKK decision, said Turkey's presidential communications director, Fahrettin Altun. The dissolution of the PKK raises a host of questions for the Islamist government of Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and the pro-American Kurdish forces (YPG) in northern Syrian who helped defeat the Islamist State terrorist movement. Turkey considers the YPG an affiliate of the PKK and has repeatedly launched military strikes against Syrian Kurds. The jailed PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan, who has been held on an island south of Istanbul since 1999, urged in February that the PKK disband. Separately, Mazloum Abdi, the pro-American commander in chief of Syrian Kurdish fighters, called the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which ousted the Islamic State, said Ocalan's call did not apply to his organization. The YPG is part of the larger umbrella organization, the SDF, and is not associated with the PKK. The U.S. and the EU are allied with the SDF and the YPG in the fight against Islamist terrorism in Syria and, in contrast to Turkey, do not see an affiliation between the SDF, YPG and the PKK. Fox News Digital has reported over the years on Turkey's efforts to wipe out pro-U.S. Syrian Kurdish forces (SDF and YPG) who played a key role in the dismantlement of the Islamic State. In December, after former Syrian dictator Bashar Assad fled to Russia and his regime collapsed, Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., declared repeatedly in an address to Erdoğan in Congress, "Leave the Kurds alone." He added, "The Kurds are America's friends… The people most responsible for helping us, most responsible for destroying ISIS, were the Kurds." The Kurds are among the largest stateless ethnic groups in the world, with some 30 million concentrated in an area straddling Turkey, Iraq, Iran and Syria. A minority in all four countries, the Kurds speak their own language, with several dialects. Most are Sunni Muslims.
Associated Press
12-05-2025
- Politics
- Associated Press
Key dates in the PKK's decades-long armed struggle against Turkey
ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — The Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, has formally declared its dissolution on Monday, marking a historic milestone that could bring an end to one of the world's longest-running conflicts. For decades, the insurgency has extended beyond Turkey's borders into northern Iraq and northern Syria, claiming tens of thousands of lives. The decision raises hopes for peace and a significant shift in the region's stability. Here are some key dates in the history of the organization that is listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey and several Western nations: Nov. 27, 1978 The PKK — an acronym for its Kurdish name, Partiya Karkeren Kurdistan — is officially founded in the village of Fis, in Turkey's mainly-Kurdish province of Diyarbakir by Abdullah Ocalan and a group of political science students from Ankara University. The Marxist organization was initially established to create an independent Kurdish state, but its objectives evolved over time to include autonomy and greater rights for Kurds, who make up an estimated 20% of the population. 1980 A military coup in Turkey forces much of the PKK to flee to neighboring countries such as Syria and Lebanon, where the fighters train in the Bekaa Valley. Ocalan leaves a year earlier, in 1979. Aug. 15, 1984 The PKK carries out its first armed attack against Turkish security posts, marking the start of its armed insurgency. 1998 Turkey issues an ultimatum to Syria, warning Damascus to expel Ocalan or face military action. The pressure forces Ocalan to leave his long-time base. Ocalan would spend the next four months traveling between several European countries, including Russia, Italy and Greece. Feb. 15, 1999 Ocalan is captured in Nairobi, Kenya by Turkish special forces — reportedly with assistance from the CIA. He is flown to Turkey and jailed on Imrali island in the Sea of Marmara, off Istanbul. June 29, 1999 Ocalan is convicted of treason and sentenced to death. His sentence is later commuted to life imprisonment, after Turkish abolishes the death penalty in 2002. August 1999 Ocalan calls on his groups to declare a unilateral ceasefire and withdraw from Turkish territory. The PKK announces a ceasefire that remains largely in effect until 2004. 2009-2011 PKK representatives hold secret talks with Turkish intelligence officers in Oslo, Norway, which ultimately break down. March 21, 2013 Ocalan calls on the PKK to lay down arms in a letter read during celebrations of the Kurdish spring festival of Newroz, marking the beginning of the peace initiative dubbed the 'Solution Process.' July 20, 2015 A deadly bomb attack targeting Kurds near the Syrian border leads to the collapse of the peace initiative and resumption of conflict. Oct. 22, 2024 Devlet Bahceli, leader of Turkey's far-right nationalist party that's allied with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, suggests parole for Ocalan, if his group renounces violence and disbands, hinting at the start of a renewed peace initiative. Oct. 23, 2024 PKK attack on a defense company near Ankara kills five people and wounds more than 20 others. Turkey retaliates with airstrikes on suspected Kurdish militant targets in Iraq and Syria. Feb. 27, 2025 Ocalan issues message from prison calling on PKK to disarm and disband. March 1, 2025 PKK declares ceasefire and expresses readiness to convene a party congress to dissolve itself. May 12, 2025 PKK announces decision to dissolve itself and end its armed struggle.
