Group of PKK members toss weapons into fire

2025-07-12 04:10:58

(MENAFN) A group of 30 PKK members, including 15 women, laid down and destroyed their weapons on Friday in northern Iraq’s Sulaymaniyah province, marking a significant moment following the organization’s recent pledge to disband.

The disarmament took place in the Surdas sub-district, where the group emerged from a cave and proceeded to a designated site. There, they destroyed their weapons by tossing them into a large burning cauldron in front of observers.

A senior PKK member read a statement in both Turkish and Kurdish during the event, which was attended by representatives from Türkiye’s National Intelligence Organization, Iraqi authorities, Kurdish Regional Government officials, Turkish opposition figures from the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), as well as NGOs and media representatives.

This act of disarmament follows a May announcement by the PKK of its decision to dissolve and end its armed campaign. That decision came in the wake of a February message from jailed PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan, who called for a definitive end to the four-decade-long conflict and the dismantling of the group and its affiliates.

The move is being viewed as a potentially historic step toward ending a conflict that has claimed tens of thousands of lives and strained regional stability for decades.

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