Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza: The total number of Palestinians killed due to famine and malnutrition has risen to 313, including 119 children
Ministry of Health in the Gaza Strip: 10 people, including two children, have died of starvation in the past 24 hours
Al Mayadeen's correspondent in South Lebanon: US envoy Tom Barrack cancels his visit to Tyre and al-Khiam amid popular protests
Al Mayadeen's correspondent in Lebanon: Israeli occupation forces carried out an explosion in the southern border town of Kfar Kila
Russian Ministry of Defense: 37 Ukrainian drones destroyed in 4 hours over regions of Russia and the Black Sea.
Sheikh Qassem: Our supporters make up more than half of Lebanon's population, and all of these people are united under the banner of protecting Lebanon, its Resistance, its people, and its integrity.
Sheikh Qassem: There will be no phased handing in of our arms. [The Israelis] must first enact the agreement before we start talking about a defensive strategy.
Sheikh Qassem: Be brave in the face of foreign pressures, and we will be by your side in this stance.
Sheikh Qassem: Stripping us of our arms is like stripping us of our very soul, and this will prompt us to show them our might.
Sheikh Qassem: We will not abandon our arms, for they gave us dignity; we will not abandon our arms, for they protect us against our enemy.

Report: Turkiye, PKK reach covert deal to end armed conflict

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: Independent Türkçe
  • 10 May 2025 23:58
  • 2 Shares
4 Min Read

Independent Türkçe reveals secret deal between Turkiye and the PKK to end armed conflict, dissolve the group, and shift to political engagement.

Listen
  • x
  • Kurdish women watch live as a Pro-Kurdish Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party, or DEM, delegation members release a statement from PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan, in Qamishli, northeastern Syria, Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025 (AP)
    Kurdish women watch live as a Pro-Kurdish Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party, or DEM, delegation members release a statement from PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan, in Qamishli, northeastern Syria, Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025 (AP)

A report by Independent Türkçe has revealed the existence of an undisclosed agreement between the Turkish state and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), aimed at ending the decades-long armed conflict and transitioning the group entirely into legal political activity.

According to the report, the terms of the deal include the full cessation of both military and political confrontation by the PKK, the dissolution of the organization, and the enforcement of a complete ban on PKK-related activities across Turkiye, Iraq, Iran, and Syria. The agreement also outlines a process for disarmament to be coordinated by a joint committee, with the PKK’s presidential council overseeing its execution.

Newsat Çiçek, Editor-in-Chief of Independent Türkçe and author of the report, stated that Turkiye played a guarantor role in the conference where the initiative was formalized, alongside other mediating parties. He noted that the conference took place with the direct knowledge and supervision of Turkish state authorities.

One day prior to the conference, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan hinted at the developments, stating that “important news on this matter will be shared in the coming days.”

Deeper layer of talks

A critical element of the report involves the role of jailed Kurdish leader Abdullah Öcalan, who reportedly met with the PKK leadership ahead of the conference to relay Ankara’s proposal and provided a recorded video message that was broadcast during the event. According to the PKK’s internal rules, any such decisions must be ratified by Öcalan himself, who remains its historical leader.

Çiçek emphasized that the leaked details represent only a fraction of the broader and more detailed negotiations that took place between Ankara, Öcalan, and PKK officials based in the Qandil Mountains.

Sources close to the organization suggest that what has been made public constitutes less than 10% of the actual content, which includes precise stages for disarmament and the political future of the movement.

Related News

Death toll from Israeli raids on Damascus countryside rises to 5

Syrian soldier wounded in SDF drone attack near Deir Ezzor

While there has been no official confirmation from the Turkish government or the PKK, the report has stirred widespread speculation over a potential shift in one of the most protracted and bloody conflicts in the region.

PKK, Turkiye agree on ceasefire

The PKK announced an immediate ceasefire in March, according to a news agency affiliated with the group, following a call by its jailed leader for disarmament.

The move marks a significant step toward ending the PKK’s four-decade-long insurgency against the Turkish state.

On Thursday, Öcalan urged the PKK to lay down its arms and dissolve, a call that has received support from both President Tayyip Erdogan's government and the opposition pro-Kurdish DEM party.

If successful, the initiative could have far-reaching regional implications while bringing an end to a conflict that has claimed more than 40,000 lives since the PKK, now headquartered in the mountains of northern Iraq, launched its armed campaign in 1984.

In its statement, the group expressed hope that Ankara would release Öcalan, who has been held in near-total isolation since 1999, so he could oversee the disarmament process.

SDF distinguishes self from PKK

While welcoming Ocalan’s appeal, the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which Ankara considers an extension of the PKK, clarified that the call did not apply to them.

Turkiye has repeatedly urged the SDF’s armed wing to disarm since the fall of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad last year, warning that failure to do so would result in military action.

Ocalan’s appeal, which was triggered by an unexpected proposal in October from an ultra-nationalist ally of Erdogan, has been welcomed by the United States, the European Union, and other Western allies, as well as by Turkiye’s neighbors, Iraq and Iran.

Since Ocalan's imprisonment, multiple efforts have been made to negotiate an end to the conflict. The most recent peace talks collapsed in 2015, and no further engagement took place until October 2023.

  • Turkey
  • Turkiye
  • Abdullah Ocalan
  • Kurdistan
  • Kurdistan Workers' Party
  • Syrian Democratic Forces
  • Recep Tayyip Erdogan

Most Read

Almost instantly after the Helsinki Accords were signed, organisations sprouted to document purported violations, whose findings were fed to overseas embassies for international amplification. (Al Mayadeen English; Illustrated by Zeinab el-Hajj)

How ‘Human Rights’ became a Western weapon

  • Opinion
  • 23 Aug 2025
Israeli soldiers stand on the top of armoured vehicles parked on an area near the Israeli-Gaza border, as seen from southern Israel, Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2025 (AP)

Palestinian fighters target Israeli soldiers, vehicles in Gaza

  • Politics
  • 21 Aug 2025
Launch of a ballistic missile from Yemen toward the occupied Palestinian territories. (YAF military media)

Yemeni Forces announce firing hypersonic missile at Al-Lydd Airport

  • Politics
  • 22 Aug 2025
The ‘Arab Façade’ for Israeli occupation in Gaza

The ‘Arab Façade’ for Israeli occupation in Gaza

  • Opinion
  • 23 Aug 2025

Coverage

All
The Ummah's Martyrs

Read Next

All
A scene showing an al-Qassam Brigades fighter during an ambush on July 7, 2025, in a video released by the al-Qassam Brigades on August 26, 2025 (al-Qassam Brigades Military Media)
Politics

Al-Qassam reveals Beit Hanoun ambush targeting Israeli forces

A Palestinian youth stands on a hill overlooking IsraelI Ofer Prison, near the West Bank city of Ramallah, Wednesday, July 3, 2024. (AP)
Politics

77 Palestinian prisoners killed in Israeli prisons since October 7

US Ambassador to Turkey and Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack speaks during a joint press conference with US deputy special envoy for Middle East peace Morgan Ortagus at the presidential palace in Baabda, Lebanon, Tuesday, August 26, 2025 (AP)
Politics

US envoy Barrack calls Lebanese journalists 'animalistic"'

Tom Barrack's imperial tantrum in Beirut: When entitlement speaks (Photo by Mahdi Rtail)
Politics

Tom Barrack's imperial tantrum in Beirut: When entitlement speaks

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS