Kurdish PKK militants to hand over first weapons in ceremony in Iraq

11/7/2025 16:09

Dozens of Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militants will hand over their weapons in a ceremony in northern Iraq on Friday, marking a symbolic but significant first step toward ending a decades-long insurgency with Turkey.



The PKK, locked in conflict with the Turkish state and outlawed since 1984, decided in May to disband, disarm and end its armed struggle after a public call to do so from its long-imprisoned leader Abdullah Ocalan.



After a series of failed peace efforts, the new initiative could pave the way for Ankara to end an insurgency that has killed over 40,000 people, burdened the economy and wrought deep social and political divisions in Turkey and the wider region.



Around 40 PKK militants and one commander were expected to hand over their weapons at the ceremony in the northern Iraqi city of Sulaymaniyah, people familiar with the plan said. The PKK is based in northern Iraq after being pushed well beyond Turkey's frontier in recent years.