In a Concrete Step Towards Disarmament, Kurdistan Workers' Party Fighters Burn Their Weapons

During a symbolic ceremony held in a city in northern Iraq, Kurdistan Workers' Party fighters began today, Friday, to hand over and burn their weapons, as a first concrete step towards disarmament pledged by the party as part of a peace process with Turkey.

The step came after the party's leader, Abdullah Ocalan, imprisoned on an island near Istanbul since 1999, urged the party in February to hold a conference, officially dissolve the party, and disarm.

Ocalan reiterated his call in a video message broadcasted on Wednesday, saying: "I believe in the power of politics and social peace, not weapons."

The ceremony took place in the mountains outside the city of Sulaymaniyah in northern Kurdistan Region of Iraq, which enjoys semi-autonomous rule.