ISTANBUL: Two days after their imprisoned leader demanded that the organization disarm, Kurdish militants who have fought a 40-year insurgency in Turkiye announced a truce on Saturday, which might be a major boost to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s administration. The Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, made the announcement against the backdrop of significant regional shifts, such as the Israel-Hamas conflict in Gaza, the waning of the Hezbollah militant movement in Lebanon, and the reorganization of power in neighboring Syria following the overthrow of President Bashar Assad.
Since it started in 1984, the struggle between Turkiye and the PKK has resulted in tens of thousands of casualties. Since peace negotiations between the PKK and Ankara collapsed in the summer of 2015, the ceasefire is the first indication of a breakthrough. A group-affiliated media source, the Firat News Agency, released the PKK statement on Saturday. It made reference to Abdullah Ocalan, the leader of the militants, who has been detained by Turkiye since 1999.
“To clear the path for Leader Apo’s demand for peace and a democratic society, we declare a ceasefire that will go into force today. Referring to Ocalan by his moniker, it stated, “Unless attacked, none of our forces will take armed action.”
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