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After PKK's Landmark Disarmament, Ocala Urges 'Major Shift' to Mend Turkey Ties
- On May 12, 2025, the Kurdistan Workers Party announced its historic decision to disarm and end a 41-year insurgency against Turkey.
- This decision followed a letter from jailed PKK founder Abdullah Ocalan, who called for a new brotherhood-based agreement amid calls for eased prison conditions.
- The disarmament brings an end to a conflict that has claimed more than 40,000 lives and impacts Turkey, where Kurdish people constitute roughly one-fifth of the nation’s population of 85 million; the government has committed to overseeing the process closely.
- A PKK spokesperson emphasized that only Abdullah Ocalan, referred to as Leader Apo, is capable of guiding the effective execution of the group's decision to disband, while also highlighting that the Turkish government has yet to provide assurances for peace and expressing opposition to the exile of PKK members.
- Observers expect the process to signal a major shift towards reconciliation, though Ocalan's release is unlikely due to security risks, and full peace depends on future negotiations and legal changes.
23 Articles
23 Articles
PKK urges Turkey to ease imprisonment of 'chief negotiator' Ocalan
The Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) has said Turkey 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.A spokesman for the Kurdish group, blacklisted as a "terrorist" organisation by Ankara and its Western allies, told AFP in an interview on Monday that Turkey has not yet provided guarantees for a peace process, and expressed objection to exi…
PKK Announces End to Armed Struggle Against Turkey
The Kurdish militant group the PKK has announced it will formally disarm and end a 40-year armed struggle against Turkey. PKK leaders formally voted to disband following a call in February by its jailed leader Abdullah Öcalan to lay down arms. Since 1984, fighting between Turkey and the PKK has killed more than 40,000 people.
New message from Abdullah Öcalan
Pervin Buldan and Faik Özgür Erol, members of the Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) Imrali Delegation, met with Kurdish people's leader Abdullah Öcalan in Imrali today. After the meeting, the delegation issued a statement. The delegation shared the following message from Öcalan: "I deeply regret not having been able to talk with Sırrı Süreyya Önder one last time. He holds a cherished place in my memory. His legacy must be preserv…
Lessons from Turkey’s PKK and Balochistan’s Crossroads
Four decades of relentless conflict between the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and Turkey have culminated in an unexpected yet historic declaration: the PKK, a Kurdish separatist group labelled a terrorist organization by Ankara and its allies, has unilaterally terminated its armed struggle. This announcement marks the end of a gruelling chapter that began in 1984, […] The post Lessons from Turkey’s PKK and Balochistan’s Crossroads appeared firs…
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