The radical Kurdish formation "Kurdistan Workers' Party" (PKK) has initiated an unprecedented process of complete disarmament, marking the end of a forty-year armed conflict with the Turkish state. The organization, previously defined as terrorist in many Western countries, has officially announced a reorientation towards entirely peaceful and democratic methods for achieving political goals.
A key moment in this process is the call of the imprisoned leader Abdullah Öcalan, who has been serving a sentence in isolation since 1999. According to his official statements, the armed phase of the struggle has ended and a period of political diplomacy has begun.
@trtrussian Момент, как теppopисты PKK сжигают свое opyжие в Ираке
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Documented video footage shows dozens of fighters, including four high-ranking leaders, symbolically destroying their personal weapons in a cave near the Sulaymaniyah area in Northern Iraq. This event takes place in an extremely symbolic location - an area that has traditionally been a refuge and center of Kurdish resistance.
News agencies report that the complete disarmament process will continue until 2026, with the ultimate goal of creating a legal political party in Turkey. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan described this move as an "important step towards achieving national security and stability".
One of the leading representatives of PKK - Besê Hozat, emphasized the organization's desire to fully participate in Turkish political life. As a key condition, they demand the release of Öcalan, who has been imprisoned for 26 years on an island off the coast of Istanbul.
Öcalan personally defined this moment as a "historic achievement", not a defeat. In his first public statement in a quarter of a century, he emphasized that the armed conflict has exhausted its potential and the time has come for dialogue and democratic solutions.
Most PKK fighters were concentrated in the mountainous regions of Northern Iraq, subjected to constant air and ground attacks by the Turkish army. The current strategy represents a radical change in their previous resistance paradigm.
International observers define this move as a potential breakthrough in decades of conflict that could lead to significant geopolitical transformations in the region.