ISTANBUL -- The Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) has declared a ceasefire with Turkiye, following the call of its jailed leader Abdullah Ocalan for disarmament and dissolution, local media reported on Saturday.
The PKK Executive Committee announced in a statement that none of its forces would carry out armed actions unless attacked, according to the NTV broadcaster.
"We, as the PKK, fully agree with the content of the mentioned call (of Ocalan) and state that we will comply with and implement its requirements from our side," said the PKK statement.
The group also said they are ready to convene their congress, but emphasized that its success requires Ocalan to "personally lead it," calling for his release from prison.
"We hope that the relevant state authorities will ensure Abdullah Ocalan's physical freedom, allowing him to live and work under normal conditions," the PKK said.
On Thursday, Ocalan called on all groups affiliated with the PKK to lay down their arms and urged the PKK to dissolve itself.
The move came as part of an initiative launched by the government to end the PKK's 40-year-long insurgency against the Turkish state, which has claimed over 40,000 lives.
Ocalan, who has been held in near-total isolation on the Imrali island in the Marmara Sea off Istanbul since 1999, founded the PKK in 1978. The PKK is designated as a terrorist group by Turkiye, the United States and the European Union.
