File image.
The Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) on July 11 began the disarmament process agreed upon with Turkey earlier in the year.
The process, which is expected to unfold throughout the summer, began with a small ceremony held in Iraq’s northern semi-autonomous region of Kurdish.
30 PKK fighters, 15 women and 15 men, gathered near the province of Sulaimaniyah, burning their weapons instead of surrendering them in a symbolic ceremony attended by more than a hundred observers from Turkey, including officials from the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democracy and Equality Party as well as journalists.
“We are destroying our weapons of our own free will,” Bese Hozat, a senior PKK official, was quoted as saying during the ceremony, ahead of the weaponry being burned.
The official went on to describe the ceremony as “a goodwill and committed step toward the practical success of the peace process.”
“We hope that this step we have taken will bring peace and freedom . . . to all our people, the peoples of Turkey and the Middle East, and all of humanity,” he added.
The PKK is designated as a “terrorist” organization by Turkey and its Western allies, including the United States. The conflict with the group has been ongoing for over 46 years. It is estimated to have claimed the lives of more than 40,000 people, so far.
In a historic announcement in May, the PKK said that it was ending the armed struggle against Turkey after its imprisoned leader, Abdullah Ocalan, ordered the group to disarm and dissolve as part of peace talks with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Erdogan welcomed the group’s first step towards disarmament, declaring it as “totally ripping off and throwing away the bloody shackles that were put on our country’s legs”. Erdogan also said the move would benefit the entire region.
In a video aired earlier this week but recorded in June by the PKK-linked Firat News Agency, Ocalan described the moment as “a voluntary transition from the phase of armed conflict to the phase of democratic politics and law”, calling it a “historic gain”.
It is unclear yet how the disarmament process will reflect on Syria, where the PKK-linked Syrian Democratic Forces, which controls most of the northeastern part of the country, is yet to integrate into the forces of the new government as agreed on in a separate breakthrough agreement with Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa last March.
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once they disarm you they will slaughter you. turks are worse than jews.
kurds are not better than turks. i am talking of the politicians and military of both sides, not the civilians.
just like isreal turkey would not survived in its current form with help from us taxpayers, they are a cowardly gang of traitors from their home country’s rulling everyone with our money.
100%. if israel and turkey ceased to exist the entire world would benefit.
kurds will be eliminated…heheheh
in preparation for their return to power… warnings of a us plan to lift sanctions on henchmen of the former regime july 10, 7:31 pm al-maalouma/anbar… on thursday, a member of the united anbar alliance, mohammed al-dulaimi, warned of the repercussions of a looming us plan to lift sanctions on henchmen of the former regime, paving the way for their return to power, with the support and coordination of influential parties in the central government.
the kurdistan workers’ party was destroyed by erdogan, and therefore tulsi (a beautiful flower) is resurrecting the iraqi baath party of saddam.
in a statement to al-maalouma, al-dulaimi said, “the us administration has begun an unannounced plan to release the assets of henchmen of the former regime after announcing the removal of the name of the former regime’s minister of trade, mohammed mahdi saleh, from the sanctions list. this step aims to lift all sanctions imposed successively on henchmen of the former regime, in preparation for their return to power, as part of a us-gulf-jordanian-turkish project.” he added,
tulsi gabbard, ron desantis, j.d. vance, they want the iraqi baath to be repaired and restored.
“the us treasury will issue a statement within the next few days lifting the first batch of assets of the former regime’s henchmen, dropping all charges against them, and allowing them to return to their political activities without imposing any restrictions. he indicated that, “jordan will host within the next few days the largest conference for the leaders of the defunct party, with the participation of political and tribal figures.” end / 12a almaalomah . me
the return of the iraqi baath is now only a matter of time.
wait a minute brother erdogon!
you dont dispose of or disband the army of a nation that has surrendered!
you simply change their colors!
they can in due course be more easily massacred. netanyahu and trump have openly publicised plans to ethnically cleanse the gaza strip by expelling the inhabitants, murdering those seeking food in the meantime. such is the great powers’ standard of humanity in the 21st century.
silly clowns…like his master israhell, the snivelling dog of ankara will now set about the total extermination of these gullible clowns. genocide is the new normal of the anglozionazi empire of filth and its natostan stooges like erdoggy.
kurds are natural born back stabbers