Pkk hails a new political era in Turkey

Friday 27 February 2026 - 12:00

By: Sahili Aya

The leader of the Kurdish guerrilla movement Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), Abdullah Öcalan, has welcomed what he described as the opening of a “new political era” in Turkey, marking one year since he called on the movement to dissolve and abandon armed struggle.

In a message read on his behalf in Ankara by a representative of the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party(DEM Party), Öcalan expressed his desire to “open a process based on a democratic society and the rule of law.” The statement coincided with the anniversary of his historic appeal urging the PKK to lay down its arms.

Öcalan, 76, has been imprisoned since 1999 on an island near Istanbul. Despite his continued detention under strict conditions, he remains an influential and symbolic figure among segments of the Kurdish movement. In his latest message, he reiterated his intention to “turn the page on a politics rooted in violence” and emphasized the importance of strengthening democratic guarantees and legal protections.

The peace-oriented shift gained momentum after mediation efforts by DEM Party lawmakers, who were authorized to visit him in prison. On 27 February 2025, Öcalan publicly called on the PKK to disband and assume what he described as a “historic responsibility” to end the armed struggle.

In May of that year, the movement confirmed during a congress that it would dissolve, and in July began a symbolic process of laying down weapons in northern Iraq, where many of its fighters had been based. Turkish authorities later established a parliamentary commission to examine the social reintegration of former PKK members, though it ruled out any general amnesty and did not address Öcalan’s own legal status.

The initiative, launched in late 2024 with backing from nationalist political forces allied with the government, seeks to end more than four decades of conflict that have resulted in tens of thousands of deaths. Observers note that while significant challenges remain, the current developments signal a potential turning point in one of Turkey’s longest-running internal conflicts.