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Top Iraqi delegation to attend PKK disarmament ceremony
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ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Representatives from across the Kurdish political spectrum, including the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), are attending a PKK disarmament ceremony in Sulaimani province on Friday.
Two senior members of the Kurdistan Community Union (KCK), an umbrella group that includes the PKK, are attending - co-chair of the KCK executive council Bese Hozat and executive council member Mustafa Karasu.
The co-chairs of Turkey's pro-Kurdish Peoples' Equality and Democracy (DEM) Party - which is mediating talks between Turkey and the PKK - are also attending.
From the Kurdistan Region, Dilshad Shahab is representing President Nechirvan Barzani and Tariq Ahmed is representing the Interior Ministry.
The Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) is represented by Hemin Hawrami, who is attending on behalf of KDP leader Masoud Barzani, and a representative from the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) will also attend.
Many other Kurdish politicians and activists are expected at the event.
Iraq's intelligence agency is also sending a delegation.
A first group of PKK fighters will disarm in a historic ceremony in the Kurdistan Region's Sulaimani province. The event marks a major milestone in a months-long peace initiative to end the four-decade conflict that has claimed more than 40,000 lives.
The disarmament is in response to a February appeal from jailed PKK founder Abdullah Ocalan to abandon armed struggle in favor of a political solution.
Founded in 1978, the PKK initially sought to establish an independent Kurdish state but later shifted its focus toward securing greater political and cultural rights for Kurds in Turkey. The PKK is designated a terrorist organization by Turkey, the United States, and the European Union.
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