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PKK fighters to lay down arms in ceremony in northern Iraq

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 09 July 2025 5:32 PM

The Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) will begin laying down its arms on Friday, marking a major step in a peace initiative with the Turkish government.

According to Aysegul Dogan, spokeswoman for Turkey's pro-Kurdish DEM Party, a group of PKK fighters is set to hand over their weapons in a formal ceremony in the northern Iraqi city of Sulaymaniyah. Dogan made the announcement Wednesday at a press conference in Ankara.

She said that disarmament must be made permanent through legal guarantees and the creation of mechanisms enabling a full transition to democratic politics.

Members of the DEM Party will reportedly attend the ceremony, alongside a group of PKK militants, though further details of the process were not disclosed.

In a pre-recorded video message released on Wednesday, jailed PKK founder Abdullah Ocalan described the disarmament of PKK fighters as a "voluntary transition from armed conflict to democratic politics and law."

Ocalan, who has been imprisoned since 1999, called in February for the PKK to end its decades-long armed struggle against the Turkish government and instead seek political solutions.

"I believe in the power of politics and social peace, not weapons. And I urge you to put this principle into practice," he said in the video.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan also addressed the peace process in a speech on Wednesday, expressing hope for progress.

"Once the wall of terror is torn down, God willing, everything will change," he said. "The winners of this process will be all of Turkey — Turks, Kurds, and Arabs. Then it will be our entire region."

Founded by Ocalan in 1978, the PKK launched an armed rebellion against Ankara in 1984. The group is classified as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the European Union, and the United States.

If successful, the disarmament could mark a turning point in one of the region's longest-running conflicts.