Turkish parliament forms PKK peace talks commission
DEM Party meets jailed PKK leader
PKK demands constitutional changes in Turkey, refuses amnesty
Ten dead in western Turkey wildfires
DEM Party rebukes call by Erdogan's ally to dissolve
A+ A-
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Turkish parliament on Friday announced the formation of a 51-member commission as part of peace talks with the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). Parties have been asked to submit their candidates by Thursday.
Parliament speaker Numan Kurtulmus sent letters to most of the political parties in the legislature, asking them to submit the names of their lawmakers that will join the commission, reported the state-run Anadolu Agency.
The ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) is entitled to 21 members, followed by the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) with ten members. The pro-Kurdish Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) and the far-right Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) each will have four members. The rest will be distributed over smaller parties. The ultranationalist Good Party (IYI) has refused to take part.
The formation of the commission is part of ongoing peace talks, or what Ankara calls terror-free Turkey, between the state and the PKK, which has decided to dissolve itself and lay down arms after decades of devastating war. A first group of PKK fighters burned their weapons earlier this month.
Sezai Temelli, a DEM Party lawmaker, told Rudaw on Tuesday that the commission's main task will be to ensure 'legal and political guarantees for the disarmament process.'
Some PKK fighters based in Duhok province told Rudaw earlier this month that they fear reprisals if they return to Turkey, with many opting to remain in the mountains instead.
Cemil Bayik, co-chair of the executive council of PKK umbrella group the Kurdistan Communities Union (KCK), said in an interview with the PKK-affiliated Yeni Yasam news outlet on Thursday that they do not seek an amnesty but are demanding constitutional changes.
'These laws need to change, not just for the Kurds, but for all democratic forces, for all left-wing forces. Democratic laws need to evolve. Freedom laws need to evolve. The constitution has failed," he said.
The PKK was formed in response to institutionalized discrimination against Turkey's Kurdish population.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Iraqi News
24 minutes ago
- Iraqi News
Iraq's wheat production declines due to summer drought
Baghdad ( – The Iraqi Ministry of Agriculture confirmed on Sunday that the country's wheat production dropped drastically in 2025 due to the lack of rain. Iraq's deputy agriculture minister, Mahdi al-Jubouri, told Rudaw that this year's wheat production is estimated to be 5.12 million tons, compared to 5.4 million tons produced in 2024. Iraq is suffering from a deepening water shortage. According to the United Nations, the country is the fifth most vulnerable to climate change, with the consequences compounded by Turkey and Iran's construction of dams on rivers that flow into Iraq. The absence of formal agreements with the two countries, along with this year's drought, has exacerbated the issue. According to al-Jubouri, Iraq has maintained a consistent production of fruits and vegetables because these crops do not require a lot of water. The Iraqi Ministry of Agriculture declared in mid-July that it had achieved self-sufficiency in wheat for the third year in a row. The wheat produced from different Iraqi provinces, except the Kurdistan region of Iraq, reached four million tons so far, Shafaq News reported. During a celebration marking the accomplishment, Iraqi Minister of Agriculture Abbas Al-Maliki stated that this achievement is the result of ongoing government support and the ministry's plans, which include providing agricultural supplies, using modern irrigation techniques to address water scarcity, and providing improved seeds and fertilizers. Iraq was self-sufficient in wheat for three years before the crisis in Ukraine, producing 4.7 million tons in 2019, 6.2 million tons in 2020, and around 4.2 million tons in 2021. However, water scarcity and desertification limited local wheat production, forcing the Iraqi government to import wheat to fill the shortfall.
Rudaw Net
36 minutes ago
- Rudaw Net
Iran executes over 100 Kurds in 2025 amid post-war crackdown: Watchdog
Also in Iran Tensions rise in Iranian parliament ahead of IAEA visit At least five killed in attack on Iran courthouse Iranian diplomat says had 'frank' talks with European powers Iran says to continue nuclear enrichment A+ A- ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iran has executed at least 100 Kurdish citizens since the start of 2025, including several political prisoners, a human rights watchdog warned Sunday. The surge comes as Iran has been upping its sentences on detainees, following its recent 12-day war with Israel. 'Since the beginning of 2025, the Islamic Republic of Iran has executed at least 100 Kurds, including four political prisoners,' reported the Oslo-based Hengaw Human Rights Organization. The watchdog censured what it described as Tehran's 'death-driven and discriminatory policy,' calling it 'part of a broader project of structural oppression against the Kurdish people that must be halted immediately.' On Saturday, Hengaw released a detailed report documenting a steep deterioration in the country's human rights landscape following the June conflict between Iran and Israel. According to the watchdog, between the outbreak of the war on June 13 and a month after the ceasefire on June 24, 'at least 85 prisoners have been executed in various prisons' across Iran. Among the executed were six individuals - three of them Kurdish - accused of 'espionage for Israel.' Hengaw noted that these executions were carried out secretly, with no final visits permitted for families. Hengaw also reported that 'at least 30 political activists, including 18 Kurdish citizens, were sentenced to death or imprisonment" by the Iranian judiciary over the past month, with cumulative sentences amounting to 272 years and 9 months. Additionally, the Oslo-based human rights monitor pointed to widespread arrests. 'From the start of the Iran-Israel war until one month after the ceasefire, at least 1,800 people were arrested across Iran,' it said. Kurds made up the largest share, with 500 detained. Many were accused by Iranian intelligence agencies of "espionage for Israel." For its part, the Kurdistan Human Rights Network (KHRN) on Thursday corroborated these findings, reporting that "over 330 Kurdish activists and other citizens' were arrested across Iran by the Iranian intelligence ministry and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) intelligence apparatus during the conflict with Israel and its aftermath. Among them, 18 Kurdish political activists were collectively sentenced to 221 years and 7 months in prison, and five received a total of 11 death sentences for charges including 'collaboration with [the Israeli intelligence agency] Mossad and Israel.' These reports emerge amid new measures taken by Iranian authorities to intensify the crackdown on alleged espionage and collaboration with Israel and the United States. Earlier this month, Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei, head of Iran's judiciary, ordered expedited processing of spy cases linked to Israel. 'Part of the deterrence in this matter lies in the speed of action,' Ejei said. His comments followed the Iranian parliament's passage of amendments to the country's espionage laws, significantly broadening the definition of hostile activity and introducing capital punishment for a wider range of offenses linked to Israel and the United States. Tensions between Iran and Israel escalated sharply on June 13 after Israeli airstrikes in Iran killed several senior military commanders and nuclear scientists. Iran retaliated with missile and drone attacks on Israeli targets. The conflict widened on June 22 when the United States bombed three Iranian nuclear sites, prompting Tehran to strike back with a missile attack on a US base in Qatar. A ceasefire, brokered by Washington, took effect on June 24 and has largely held. Since the ceasefire, Iranian authorities have ramped up arrests and executions of alleged spies, releasing televised confessions from several detainees. However, human rights groups have questioned the credibility of such confessions, citing longstanding concerns over Iran's use of coercion to extract false admissions.
Rudaw Net
2 hours ago
- Rudaw Net
Iraqi authorities arrest PMF members linked to attack on state institution
Also in Iraq Iraq to hit 52 degrees Celsius amid scorching summer Iraq sees drop in wheat production amid summer drought MP says Iraq can withdraw from maritime agreement with Kuwait MPs slam Baghdad for banning Kurdish in disputed areas A+ A- ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - At least one Iraqi officer and several other personnel were injured in an 'armed assault' at an Iraqi agriculture ministry office in western Baghdad on Sunday, Iraqi authorities confirmed, adding that more than a dozen suspects linked to the Iran-aligned Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) have been arrested in connection with the attack. In a statement, the Security Media Cell of the Joint Operations Command said that 'a reprehensible incident' occurred at the ministry's Karkh district office on Sunday morning, resulting in injuries among security forces. 'Security forces were able to arrest 14 suspects' who were identified as members of the PMF's 'brigades 45 and 46,' the Cell added, noting that the suspects 'have been referred to the judiciary, with legal proceedings underway.' Brigades 45 and 46 are affiliated with the Kata'ib Hezbollah - a powerful Iranian-backed Iraqi armed group designated by the United States as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO). Washington holds Kata'ib Hezbollah, a key player in the Iran-led 'Axis of Resistance,' responsible for numerous attacks on US assets in the region since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas conflict in October 2023. In response to Sunday's incident, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' al-Sudani - who also serves as commander-in-chief of the Iraqi armed forces, including the PMF - 'has ordered the formation of a high-level investigative committee' to probe 'how an armed force acted without official orders or approvals, attempted to seize a government building, and opened fire on security units,' the Security Media Cell added. In a previous statement on Sunday, the Iraqi interior ministry noted that 'the incident coincided with a newly appointed director beginning his duties,' adding that Iraqi federal police units and Karkh emergency patrols 'quickly intervened and came under direct gunfire, resulting in several officers and personnel sustaining various injuries.' The ministry noted that 'search and pursuit operations are ongoing' to apprehend remaining suspects, affirming its strong condemnation and stressing that Iraqi forces 'will not tolerate any party attempting to impose a de facto situation by force or threaten state institutions. 'Upholding the authority of the state and the rule of law remains a top and non-negotiable priority,' the ministry emphasized. This is not the first time Kata'ib Hezbollah has been linked to clashes with Iraqi state forces. Previous incidents include a firefight with federal police in Baghdad in May 2023 and a confrontation with the Iraqi Counter Terrorism Service at Camp Speicher in March 2023. The group has also been accused of participating in the violent crackdown on the October 2019 - Tishreen Movement - pro-reform demonstrations across Iraq and of involvement in the November 2021 assassination attempt on then-prime minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi via a drone attack on his Green Zone residence. The incident notably occurred shortly after clashes between security forces and supporters of Iran-backed armed groups protesting election results. While Kata'ib Hezbollah has strongly denied involvement, the use of explosive-laden drones, a hallmark of Iran-backed Iraqi armed groups, and Kadhimi's then-perceived alignment with the US fueled widespread belief in their responsibility.
