PKK declares ceasefire after four decades of conflict with Turkiye

Saturday 01 March 2025 - 09:35

By: Zahouani Ilham

PKK declares ceasefire after four decades of conflict with Turkiye

The Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) has announced a ceasefire with Turkiye, following an appeal from its imprisoned leader, Abdullah Ocalan, to lay down arms, according to Kurdish media sources.

The declaration, reported by the pro-PKK Firat news agency (ANF) on Saturday, is seen as a significant step toward ending a 40-year insurgency against the Turkish government. In a statement, the PKK executive committee affirmed its commitment to Ocalan’s call for peace and democracy, stating that its forces would refrain from armed action unless provoked.

The group expressed hope that Ankara would release Ocalan, who has been in near-total isolation since 1999, to facilitate the disarmament process. However, no specific timeline was provided for the group’s dissolution.

Ocalan, 75, reiterated his call for the PKK to disband in a historic message from prison on Thursday. The following day, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan acknowledged the call as a “historic opportunity” for peace and pledged to closely monitor the process.

The PKK, labeled a terrorist organization by Turkiye, the United States, and the European Union, has led an insurgency since 1984 in pursuit of Kurdish self-rule. The conflict has resulted in over 40,000 deaths.

Although previous peace efforts collapsed, most recently in 2015, the PKK stated it was willing to convene a congress to implement Ocalan’s vision, provided that security conditions allow for it and Ocalan can personally oversee the process.

Iraq welcomed the announcement, calling it a positive step toward regional stability. The PKK’s presence in northern Iraq has long been a point of tension between Baghdad and Ankara, which frequently conducts military operations in the area against the Kurdish group.