PKK militant group source says Turkish approval of peace roadmap is important step


Turkey’s Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmus chairs a parliamentary commission set to vote on a draft report aimed at facilitating the disarmament of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), a step that could advance a peace process to end more than four decades of conflict, in Ankara, Turkey, February 18, 2026. Grand National Assembly of Turkey/Handout via REUTERS

BAGHDAD, Feb 19 (Reuters) - ⁠A Turkish parliamentary commission's approval of ⁠a report setting out a roadmap for ‌legal reforms alongside the disbandment of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militant group is an important step and the ​beginning of a fundamental change ⁠in Turkish policy, ⁠a PKK source told Reuters on Thursday.

The commission ⁠voted ‌overwhelmingly on Wednesday to approve the report, advancing a peace process ⁠designed to end decades of conflict.

"The vote ​is considered ‌an achievement and an important step toward ⁠consolidating democracy ​in Turkey," said the PKK source.

The PKK - designated a terrorist organisation by Turkey, the United ⁠States and European Union - halted ​attacks last year and said in May it had decided to disband and end its ⁠armed struggle.

The parliamentary vote shifts the peace process to the legislative theatre, as President Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey's leader of more than two ​decades, bids to end a ⁠conflict that has killed more than 40,000 ​people, sown deep discord at ‌home and spread violence ​across borders into Iraq and Syria.

(Reporting by Ahmed Rasheed; Editing by Alexandra Hudson)

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