Al-Jazeera reported that the leader of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) Abdullah Ocalan called for the disarming, dissolution and end of the conflict with the Turkish state.
The PKK is considered a "terrorist organization" by Türkiye, the United States, Canada, Australia and the European Union (EU).
Supporters hold up a picture of Abdullah Ocalan in the southeastern Turkish city of Diyarbakir on February 27 after he called on the PKK to lay down its arms.
Ocalan's appeal came after a delegation from Türkiye's pro-Kurdish People's Democracy and Equality Party (DEM) visited Imrali Island on February 27, where Ocalan, 75, is serving a life sentence. The delegation later announced Ocalan's message in Istanbul.
In the letter, Mr. Ocalan wrote: "I call for the laying down of arms and I accept historical responsibility for this. Convene the party congress and make a decision. All groups must lay down their arms and the PKK must be dissolved."
This is the first time the PKK leader has called for the group to be dissolved. Mr. Ocalan explained that the PKK was founded during a period when the state restricted Kurdish rights, but now Kurdish identity is no longer denied and there have been improvements in freedom of expression.
Türkiye will be “freed from its shackles” if the PKK agrees to lay down its arms and disband, said ruling AK Party vice-chairman Efkan Ala. He expects the PKK to heed Ocalan’s call.
Galip Dalay, a research fellow at the Chatham House think tank, said that if successful, the move would be one of the most transformative events ever to take place in the Middle East. It could change Turkish politics as well as its relationship with Kurdish groups in the region.
What is the PKK?
The PKK was founded in 1984 to fight against the Turkish state and establish a separate Kurdish state in southeastern Türkiye. The organization has since officially abandoned its separatist goals but has called for greater autonomy.
The group and Türkiye have been in constant armed conflict for more than four decades. In October 2024, the PKK claimed responsibility for an attack on a state-run arms company near Ankara that killed at least five people and injured 22.
The PKK is also linked to other Kurdish groups in Iran, Iraq and Syria. The YPG, the Kurdish group that forms the core of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) alliance, is considered part of the PKK. The SDF is a partner of the United States, an ally of Türkiye, in the fight against the Islamic State (IS) in Syria.
Ocalan was one of the founding members of the PKK. He was imprisoned in 1999 on Imrali Island for treason. Despite his imprisonment, he still holds great influence over the PKK and its leaders are expected to heed his calls, according to Al-Jazeera.
The call is part of a peace dialogue process between the PKK and the Turkish state initiated in October 2024 by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s coalition partner Devlet Bahceli. Bahceli has suggested that Ocalan could be pardoned if the PKK abandons its violent path and disbands.
In 2015, a ceasefire between the PKK and Türkiye collapsed, leading to the government restarting attacks on the group across northern Iraq.
Reaction of the parties
The head of the autonomous Kurdish administration in northern Iraq, Nechirvan Barzani, welcomed Ocalan's decision. Meanwhile, the head of the SDF in Syria, Mazloum Abdi, said Ocalan's announcement was historic but "has nothing to do with us in Syria".
In the US, White House National Security Council spokesman Brian Hughes welcomed Ocalan's call and hoped it would appease Türkiye about the SDF, America's anti-IS partner in Syria.
The Iraqi Foreign Ministry also issued a statement welcoming Mr. Ocalan's positive and important actions to achieve stability in the region.
Source: https://thanhnien.vn/thu-linh-pkk-bat-ngo-keu-goi-buong-vu-khi-ngung-xung-dot-voi-tho-nhi-ky-185250228103518886.htm
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