Following the call from İmralı on February 27, 2025, the PKK decided to lay down its arms in May. As part of the dissolution decision taken at the 12th Congress, 30 members symbolically burned and destroyed their weapons in a ceremony held in the rural area of Sulaymaniyah in northern Iraq last July.
As part of the process, the organization withdrew from Turkey to the Qandil region in northern Iraq on October 26. It first emptied its camp in the Zap Valley, located about 20 kilometers from the border opposite the Çukurca district of Hakkari.
While preparations for legal regulations continue under the Terror-Free Turkey process, the organization has completely emptied the border line with Turkey and withdrawn to the interior. It vacated strategic camps such as Sinat, Haftanin, Metina, Zap, Mezi, Sine, Avaşin, Basyan, Gara, Hakurk, and Sidekan, located opposite Şırnak and Hakkari, which it had used for attacks against Turkey for over 40 years.
Around 1,500 PKK members, along with their weapons, withdrew to the Mount Qandil region on the Iran-Iraq border. Some members are also said to have moved to rural areas in the city of Sulaymaniyah.
Senior officials in the region emphasize that the main goal is for the PKK to completely lay down its arms. With the developments in the process, the organization is expected to fully disarm. In the coming period, developments are also anticipated regarding the Mahmur camp, which officials describe as 'the incubator of Qandil'.
Meanwhile, units of the Turkish Armed Forces have base areas in the mentioned regions.