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Jailed Kurdish militant leader urges PKK fighters to disarm before a symbolic peace ceremony

NORTHERN IRAQ, JUL 09 – PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan urged fighters to disarm as part of a peace process ending 40 years of conflict that caused over 40,000 deaths, with a symbolic ceremony planned in Iraq.

  • A symbolic ceremony is scheduled for Friday in Sulaymaniyah, Iraqi Kurdistan, where about 30 PKK fighters will lay down and destroy their weapons as a step in a peace process with Turkey.
  • This event follows the PKK's formal dissolution announced in May and a historic call by its leader Abdullah Ocalan, who has been imprisoned since 1999, urging disarmament and democratic political engagement.
  • Ocalan shared a seven-minute video message on Wednesday reiterating his call for disarmament, highlighting the crucial role of a parliamentary oversight commission, and stressing the shift toward resolving issues through political and legal means instead of armed conflict.
  • President Erdogan conveyed optimism that the disarmament process would accelerate peace initiatives and hoped it would conclude smoothly without interference, emphasizing that this would help prevent further suffering.
  • The ceremony and the subsequent disarmament represent a significant move toward peace following a conflict that began in 1984 and resulted in over 40,000 casualties, with the potential to positively impact the entire region if successfully carried out.
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Center

Kurdish PKK fighters to begin disarming at key ceremony

PKK fighters were to begin laying down their weapons at a ceremony in Iraqi Kurdistan Friday, two months after the Kurdish rebels ended their decades-long armed struggle against the Turkish state.

·France
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Left

The banned Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) announced its dissolution in May. On Friday it wants to lay down at least some of its weapons - but states conditions.

Left

The calendar for the peace process in Turkey and its surroundings ** Friday, 11/7/2025, a series of PKK elements of their light weapons will be celebrated. ** President Erdoğan will deliver an important speech on peace and disarmament in Turkey, Saturday, 12/7/2025. ** A peace commission will be formed in the Turkish National Council in the coming weeks to prepare for legal and constitutional action in harmony with the new peaceful situation. **…

·Iraq
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On Friday, the PKK's disarmament will begin with a symbolic ceremony, overshadowed by the death of twelve Turkish soldiers.

·Frankfurt, Germany
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U.S. News broke the news in New York, United States on Tuesday, July 8, 2025.
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