Overview

• On July 12 in northern Iraq, about 30 PKK fighters held a symbolic ceremony to lay down and burn their weapons, initiating a process expected to last several months.
• President Erdogan hailed the event as a national victory and said it ushered in a new chapter after four decades of conflict.
• Beze Hozat, co-leader of the disbanded PKK, has insisted on constitutional security guarantees to shield returning members from prosecution or violence.
• The disarmament follows the PKK’s formal dissolution on May 12 at the urging of imprisoned founder Abdullah Öcalan.
• Despite ending its armed struggle, the PKK remains designated as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the European Union, and the United States.