Tanya Goudsouzian
At the entrance to a cave northwest of Sulaymaniyah in Iraq's Kurdistan Region, PKK fighters threw their weapons into a fire in a ceremony that marked the end of their decades-long armed struggle against the Turkish state. The symbolic act followed the group's public announcement of disarmament and was attended by representatives of most Kurdish factions.
Since 1984, the PKK (Kurdistan Workers' Party) has waged an insurgency against the Turkish state that has cost over 40,000 lives and transformed borderlands into militarized zones. Now, with incarcerated PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan's blessing—and a surprising political overture from Turkey's far right—the PKK has unilaterally moved to disarm.
Last October, Devlet Bahçeli, leader of the far right Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) and a close ally of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, stunned observers by suggesting in Parliament that Öcalan could be considered for parole if he formally renounced violence and dismantled the PKK.
A fighter with the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) puts his weapon into a pit during a ceremony in Sulaymaniyah, in Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region, on July 11, 2025. SHWAN MOHAMMED/AFP via Getty Images
Iraq was a significant behind-the-scenes mediator and its involvement may prove decisive in determining whether this will bring a permanent end to a decades-long conflict. Concerns center on interference from remaining factions unimpressed by the terms, or by regional spoilers. For now, however, arrangements seem to be holding as all sides work to reach a final agreement.
The move was welcomed in Iraq, where Turkish cross-border operations against the PKK had long provoked public anger in a country fiercely protective of its sovereignty and deeply resentful of foreign incursions. With the PKK now signaling demobilization, Baghdad sees an opportunity to reassert authority in the north, ease regional tensions, and reestablish security—especially with elections in November, where the government is eager to project stability and assertiveness.
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