Overview

• The ceremony in Sulaymaniyya saw PKK fighters deposit and burn dozens of AK-47 rifles in a symbolic blaze.
• The disarmament follows Abdullah Öcalan’s late-February order to dissolve the PKK’s military structure.
• The pro-Kurdish Equality and Democracy Party brokered recent meetings between Öcalan and President Erdoğan to facilitate the peace initiative.
• President Erdoğan described the weapons burning as an irreversible step toward freeing Turkey from a decades-long terrorist threat.
• Ankara plans long-term reconciliation and integration programs to support former militants and affected communities.