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PKK Kurdistan Workers Party

Members of the Kurdistan Freedom Party PAK stand guard in Erbil, Iraq, March 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Rashid Yahya)
March 15, 2026, 4:50 pm
Small, divided and wary, Kurdish rebels won’t be the ones bringing down Iran’s regime
Trump floated the idea of Kurdish militias going on the offensive to help defeat the Islamic Republic, but the reality on the ground limits the role they can likely play in Tehran’s collapse
By Lazar Berman
Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) forces withdraw from al-Aktan prison on the outskirts of the northeastern city of Raqqa, bound for Kobane, on January 23, 2026. (Bakr ALKASEM / AFP)
January 23, 2026, 3:15 pm
Syrian government takes over prison from Kurdish-led SDF, amid focus on ISIS inmates
Damascus announces control of prison in Raqqa, UN refugee agency struggles to access camp for ISIS families and EU warns of potential breakout amid Kurds’ rapid loss of territory
By Agencies
Residents flee the Sheikh Maqsoud and Achrafieh neighborhoods after clashes broke out between Syrian government forces and Kurdish fighters in a contested area of the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, January 7, 2026. (AP/Omar Albam)
January 7, 2026, 10:27 pm
Civilians flee Aleppo as clashes between Syrian government and Kurdish forces escalate
Latest clashes are the deadliest so far between the two sides and come as efforts to merge the Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces with the national army have shown little progress
By OMAR ALBAM
Fighters with the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) descend stairs ahead of a ceremony in Sulaimaniyah, in Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region, on July 11, 2025. (Shwan MOHAMMED / AFP)
October 26, 2025, 10:38 am
Kurdish PKK begins withdrawing forces from Turkey to northern Iraq
Group says Ankara must take legal steps to afford its fighters freedom, democratic integration
By AFP
Fighters with the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) line up to put their weapons into a pit during a ceremony in Sulaimaniyah, in Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region, on July 11, 2025. (Shwan MOHAMMED / AFP)
July 12, 2025, 12:52 pm
Kurdish PKK fighters burn their weapons at disarmament ceremony in Iraq
Erdogan hails symbolic destruction of arms as step toward ‘terror-free Turkey’; top PKK fighter says jailed leader Abdullah Ocalan must be set free for rapprochement to work
By Rouba El Husseini and HAZEL WARD
A man holds a portrait of Abdullah Ocalan, Turkish-jailed founder of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), next to a bonfire during a gathering for Nowruz celebrations marking the New Year of the Persian calendar and the first day of spring, in Diyarbakir, southeastern Turkey, on March 21, 2025. (Ilyas AKENGIN / AFP)
May 12, 2025, 12:41 pm
Kurdish PKK group will disband and disarm as part of peace initiative with Turkey
Kurdistan Workers’ Party says decision was made at congress last week to ‘dissolve’ its organizational structure, claims to have achieved its ‘historical mission’
By Agencies
People gather outside Istanbul's city hall to support Istanbul mayor Ekrem Immamoglu following his arrest in connection with two probes, one for "aiding a terrorist organization" and a second for graft, in Istanbul, on March 22, 2025. (Kemal Aslan/AFP)
March 22, 2025, 8:03 pm
Detained Istanbul mayor faces 2nd day of questioning as protests continue unabated
More than 340 people arrested for rallies across Turkey after popular opposition figure hauled in on corruption and pro-terror charges; Erdogan blames ‘opportunists’ for unrest
By AP
Youngsters hold a photograph of the jailed leader of the rebel Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, Abdullah Ocalan as they gather to watch live on a tv screen a Pro-Kurdish Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party, or DEM, delegation members releasing an statement from Ocalan, in Diyarbakir, Turkey, Feb. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Metin Yoksu)
March 1, 2025, 11:54 am
PKK declares ceasefire with Turkey after 40 years of armed struggle
Declaration by outlawed group comes after jailed leader said it should lay down arms, disband
By Fulya Ozerkan
Supporters display a poster depicting jailed leader of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) Abdullah Ocalan, 75, after he called on the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) to disarm and dissolve itself in Diyarbakir, southeastern Turkey, on February 27, 2025. (Yasin Akgul / AFP)
February 27, 2025, 8:10 pm
In major shift, Kurdish PKK founder urges group to disarm, end conflict with Turkey
Jailed separatist Abdullah Ocalan accepts olive branch extended by Ankara to end decades-long insurgency – but declaration’s influence on US-backed fighters in Syria unclear
By Fulya Ozerkan
Fighters with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) inspect damaged and abandoned military vehicles and equipment at the Qamishli international airport, formerly a joint Syrian-Russian military base, in northeastern Syria's city of Qamishli on December 9, 2024. (Delil souleiman / AFP)
December 22, 2024, 12:07 pm
As Turkey moves in following Assad’s fall, Syria’s Kurds are on the defensive
After rebels sweep to power in Damascus, Syrian Kurdish leader asks Trump to prevent northern incursion by Ankara — which views Kurdish factions as a national security threat
By Orhan Qereman, TOM PERRY and Tuvan Gumrukcu
People gather to celebrate the Syrian government fall in Istanbul, Turkey, Sunday, December 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel)
December 8, 2024, 7:57 pm
Where Turkey stands after Assad regime falls to Syrian opposition
Turkey’s longstanding and complicated ties with the different opposition factions make them the key player going forward in Syria’s transition, but Ankara’s direction is murky
By Susan Fraser and andrew wilks
Members of the Syrian community wave Syrian flags in Berlin, Germany, and celebrate the end of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad's rule after rebel fighters took control of the Syrian capital Damascus on December 8, 2024. (Frank ZELLER / AFP)
December 8, 2024, 3:25 pm
Global leaders urge calm, stability after rebels oust Assad regime
US says ‘closely monitoring’ situation, while senior Russian lawmaker predicts civil war will continue; others warn against letting terror groups seize power
By Agencies
Yazidi men sit together during sunset in the Sharya displacement camp in the Duhok area of the Kurdistan region of Iraq, June 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Julia Zimmermann)
July 29, 2024, 12:54 pm
10 years on, many Yazidis uprooted by ISIS onslaught still struggle to find stability
Members of devastated community are trickling back home to Sinjar district after a decade of displacement, but despite their homeland’s deep significance, many see no future there
By ABBY SEWELL and Qassim Abdul-Zahra
File: Members of Turkish Police Special Forces secure the area near the Interior Ministry following a bomb attack in Ankara, on October 1, 2023. (Adem Altan/AFP)
October 3, 2023, 1:31 pm
Nearly 1,000 arrested as Turkey cracks down on Kurdish group after suicide blast
55 detainees suspected of being part of ‘intelligence structure’ of outlawed PKK, another 928 held for firearms offences in related sweeps across country, minister says
By Agencies
Members of Turkish Police Special Forces secure the area near the Interior Ministry following a bomb attack in Ankara, on October 1, 2023, leaving two police officers injured. (Adem ALTAN / AFP)
October 2, 2023, 3:22 am
Turkish jets strike Kurds in northern Iraq after Ankara suicide bombing
Defense ministry says 20 sites hit, several people ‘neutralized’ after rebel group claims attack on government building; Erdogan pushes Syria buffer zone plan in parliament speech
By Susan Frazer
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