A Turkish opposition party delegation visited Iraq's semiautonomous Kurdish region to engage in peace efforts between Ankara and a banned Kurdish separatist movement in Turkey. The delegation, led by senior officials from the pro-Kurdish People's Equality and Democracy Party (DEM) in Turkey, met with Masoud Barzani, the head of the Kurdistan Democratic Party in Iraq. Discussions centered around the peace process in Turkey, with the Turkish delegation conveying a message from Abdullah Ocalan, the imprisoned leader of the banned Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).
Barzani emphasized the importance of intensifying efforts for the peace process to succeed and expressed readiness to support it. The DEM party advocates for greater democracy and rights for Turkey's Kurdish population, as well as improved conditions for Ocalan, who founded the PKK in 1978. The PKK initiated an armed insurrection in 1984, leading to significant casualties and is designated a terrorist organization by Turkey and its Western allies.
