After 40 Years: PKK Fighters Withdraw from Four Camps in Northern Iraq

Turkish security sources said on Monday that fighters belonging to the banned Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) withdrew from four camps in northern Iraq as part of the first steps in a planned process to dissolve the group.

The Turkish parliament approved a law in August setting standards for dissolving the group within the framework of a peace process hoped to end a decades-long conflict that has killed tens of thousands of people and devastated the predominantly Kurdish southeast of the country.

The law provides protection for many former fighters who have not committed specific crimes and also facilitates the suspension of sentences issued against some convicted of membership in the PKK, paving the way for their reintegration into society.

Security sources stated that the group had withdrawn since last Thursday from the Hebat, Yajk, Sabri, and Sason camps in Bazi in the Iraqi Metina region, indicating that the peace process is moving forward.

The sources added that PKK members can join social integration programs in education, economy, and other fields within the legal framework for dissolving the group, once they cease all activities.

Withdrawal Operations

The peace process between Turkey, which possesses the second-largest army in NATO, and the PKK began in late 2024 but was largely halted earlier this year due to the war on Iran and concerns about regional instability.

No comment has yet been issued by Iraq or the PKK regarding the withdrawal operations.

The PKK is classified as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the United States, and the European Union.

The group launched its armed campaign in 1984, initially seeking an independent Kurdish state in southeastern Turkey, but later shifted its goals to autonomy and the enhancement of political rights for Kurds.