Turkey demanded Thursday that the PKK and all of its affiliates disarm and disband “immediately,” one week after the jailed founder of the Kurdish militant group made a historic plea.
“The PKK and all groups affiliated with it must end all terrorist activities, dissolve and immediately and unconditionally lay down their weapons,” a Turkish defence ministry source said.
The remarks made clear the demand referred to all manifestations of Abdullah Ocalan’s Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which has led a four-decade insurgency against the Turkish state, costing tens of thousands of lives.
The PKK’s leadership is situated in the northern Iraqi mountains, and its members are also a part of the Kurdish-led SDF, a significant force in northeastern Syria, despite the fact that the insurgency was directed towards Turkey.
Ocalan made a historic demand last week for the PKK to disband and for his members to disarm; the group accepted his request and announced a truce on Saturday.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan issued a warning that same day, saying Turkish forces will continue their anti-PKK operations if the promises were not fulfilled.
“If the promises given are not kept and an attempt is made to delay… or deceive… we will continue our ongoing operations… until we eliminate the last terrorist,” he said.
