Video: PKK burns weapons in ceremony marking end of armed struggle

The group, which declared its dissolution after a May congress as part of a peace process, has taken the first step with a symbolic ceremony.

BIA News Desk

🔴 PKK'nin #Süleymaniye'deki silah bırakma töreninde silahların yakıldığı anlar... pic.twitter.com/6m7sqCrYUo
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The Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) held a ceremony symbolizing the end of its four-decade armed campaign in Sulaymaniyah, in the Kurdistan region of northern Iraq.

The move follows the Feb 27 call from PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan for peace and democratic reform, which was welcomed by both the Turkish government and the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Equality and Democracy (DEM) Party.

After its May 5–7 congress, the PKK declared its organizational dissolution and the abandonment of armed struggle.

At today's ceremony, the group stated it would continue its efforts through legal and democratic means under the name “Group for Peace and Democratic Society.”

The ceremony, held in the Şikefta Caseneyê (Casene Cave) area, featured the symbolic burning of weapons by 30 PKK members, with observers from human rights organizations, the Iraqi central government, and the Kurdistan Regional Government in attendance. (VK)

Origin

Istanbul