Latest news with #disband
Arab News
20-05-2025
- Politics
- Arab News
PKK urges Turkiye to ease leader's solitary confinement for any peace talks
SULAIMANIYAH, Iraq: The Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) has said Türkiye should ease prison conditions for its founder Abdullah Ocalan, declaring him the group's 'chief negotiator' for any future talks after a decision to disband. The Kurdish group, blacklisted by Ankara and its Western allies, announced on May 12 it had adopted a decision to disarm and disband after a decades-long insurgency against the Turkish state that cost more than 40,000 lives. The group's historic decision came after an appeal by Ocalan, made in a letter from Istanbul's Imrali prison island where he has been held since 1999. Zagros Hiwa, spokesman for the PKK's political wing, told AFP on Monday that 'we expect that the Turkish state makes amendments in the solitary confinement conditions' to allow Ocalan 'free and secure work conditions so that he could lead the process.' 'Leader Apo is our chief negotiator' for any talks with Türkiye, Hiwa added in an interview, referring to Ocalan. 'Only Leader Apo can lead the practical implementation of the decision taken by the PKK.' The disbanding mechanisms are unclear yet, but the Turkish government has said it would carefully monitor the process to ensure full implementation. Hiwa said the PKK has shown 'seriousness regarding peace,' but 'till now the Turkish state has not given any guarantees and taken any measure for facilitating the process' and continued its 'bombardments and artillery shellings' against the Kurdish group's positions. The PKK operates rear bases in Iraq's autonomous northern Kurdistan region, where Türkiye also maintains military bases and often carries out air and ground operations against the Kurdish militants. Turkish media reports have suggested that militants who had committed no crime on Turkish soil could return without fear of prosecution, but that PKK leaders might be forced into exile or stay behind in Iraq. Hiwa said the PKK objects to its members or leaders being forced to leave, saying that 'real peace requires integration, not exile.'
Asharq Al-Awsat
17-05-2025
- Politics
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Türkiye Says in Talks with Baghdad, Erbil on PKK Weapons Handover
Türkiye is in talks with authorities in Baghdad and in the northern Iraqi city of Erbil on how Kurdish militants of the PKK will hand over their weapons, President Tayyip Erdogan said following the group's decision to disband. "Talks are being held with our neighbouring countries on how the weapons of terrorists outside our borders will be handed over," Erdogan said, according to a transcript of remarks he made to journalists on his return flight from Albania overnight. "There are plans regarding how the Baghdad and Erbil administrations will take part in this process," he added. The PKK , which has been locked in bloody conflict with Türkiye for more than four decades, has decided to disband and end its armed struggle, group members and Turkish leaders said earlier this week on Monday.
Al Arabiya
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Al Arabiya
Turkey to set up mechanism for PKK weapons handover: Report
A coordinated mechanism for the handover of Kurdish militant group PKK weapons will be established following the group's decision to dissolve, Turkey's defense ministry said, according to state-owned Anadolu news agency. The ministry said relevant state institutions would coordinate with counterparts in regional countries to set up the mechanism, Anadolu reported. The PKK, which has been locked in bloody conflict with Turkey for more than four decades, has decided to disband and end its armed struggle, group members and Turkish leaders said on Monday. Also on Thursday, a Turkish defense ministry spokesman said in a briefing that Turkey's military will continue acting against PKK militants in regions where they are present until it is 'certain' the threat is removed following decision to disband. The military will 'continue to act in the regions used by the separatist PKK terrorist organization with determination until it is certain the region is cleared and will no longer pose a threat to Turkey,' a ministry spokesman said in a briefing. Blacklisted as a terrorist organization by Turkey and its Western allies, the PKK operates rear bases in Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region, where Turkey also maintains military bases and often carries out air and ground operations against the Kurdish militants. The PKK is also present in Syria, where Turkey has military bases in the north and has since 2016 carried out several ground operations to force the militants away from its border.
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Kurdish PKK militia to disband for Turkey talks
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. The Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) said Monday that it will disband and disarm after four decades of armed conflict with Turkey. The decision was announced through the Firat News Agency, a media outlet close to the PKK, after a party congress in northern Iraq. Jailed PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan called for his group to disband in February, and the PKK declared a ceasefire March 1, on condition that Turkey create a legal framework for peace talks. "The PKK has completed its historic mission" and "decided to dissolve" its "organizational structure" and "end the armed struggle," the group said in a statement Monday morning. The decision "promises to put an end to one of the longest insurgencies in the Middle East," The Associated Press said. It should have "far-reaching political and security consequences for the region, including in neighboring Iraq and also in Syria, where Kurdish forces are allied with U.S. forces," Reuters said. The insurgency, which has claimed more than 40,000 lives since 1984, also "handicapped the regional economy for decades." Omer Celik, a spokesperson for Turkey's ruling AK Party, said the PKK's decision was an "important step toward a terror-free Turkey." "Details of the peace initiative have not been made public," including what will happen to the PKK's fighters, "how weapons would be disposed of and who would monitor" the process, the AP said. "Previous peace efforts between Turkey and the group — most recently in 2015 — have ended with failure."
Times
12-05-2025
- Politics
- Times
Kurdish PKK group to disband after deadly 40-year Turkish conflict
The PKK Kurdish militant group has announced it will disband and formally end its armed struggle against the Turkish state, in a significant move towards ending one of the world's longest-running and deadliest insurgencies. The Turkish government hailed the announcement as an important step towards a 'terror-free Turkey' after four decades of violence that killed more than 40,000 people, mostly Kurdish civilians. Omer Celik, a spokesman for President Erdogan's Justice and Development Party, said that the disbanding process would be 'meticulously monitored in the field by state institutions' and that an end to the conflict would be a 'victory for all our citizens'. The announcement from the PKK came on Monday morning via a media outlet close to the group, and followed a party congress
