ISTANBUL, July  11, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - Turkey's pro-Kurdish DEM party on
Friday hailed a "new era" following a historic disarmament ceremony at which
PKK militants began destroying their weapons after ending decades of armed
struggle.

"With the PKK's arms burning ceremony, we are entering a new era for a
solution to the Kurdish issue and the construction of a democratic Turkey," the
party said in a statement, describing it as "a turning point" for the Middle
East.

The party, which played a key role in facilitating contacts between Ankara
and jailed PKK founder Abdullah Ocalan, also filed a request for the release of
Selahattin Demirtas, the former head of the pro-Kurdish HDP party, which later
became DEM.

"We have filed a request with the Ankara (court) for the release of the
former HDP co-chairs... who have been unlawfully held hostage for years," it
said.

The charismatic 52-year-old has been jailed since 2016 and last year, was
sentenced to 42 years for his alleged role in a series of deadly protests that
happened a decade earlier.

The statement also referred to his former co-chair Figen Yuksekdag, 53, who
was sentenced in 2024 to 30 years on charges of terrorist propaganda.

"We wholeheartedly salute this historic initiative for disarmament and
transition to democratic politics by the Group for Peace and Democratic
Society," DEM said, referring to the group that destroyed its weapons earlier
on Friday.

"It's time to intensify the struggle for democratic politics."