Media reports say that a comprehensive draft on the next steps for the terror-free Türkiye initiative for disarmament of the PKK terrorist group will be made public in April. Reports come amid an expected meeting of the parliament speaker with representatives of political parties this week to discuss the current stage in the initiative.

Disclosure of the draft report in full will be just the beginning of a parliamentary process to respond to the PKK’s announcement last year that it would dissolve itself, after more than four decades of violence. Parliament is expected to draft new laws or amend the existing ones for leniency to members of the terrorist group who agree to turn themselves in.

So far, the initiative has been a series of apparently unilateral steps by the PKK, which started burning weapons in a symbolic move after announcing its dissolution. Authorities have treaded carefully, both not to offend families of the PKK’s victims and to make sure that the PKK fulfills its promises to abandon arms. Currently, the disarmament process is being monitored by Turkish intelligence. The PKK is spread across Iraq, Syria and Iran, and its members may be allowed to return to Türkiye if the initiative succeeds. To ensure returns, Türkiye is required to offer leniency in the sentencing of the PKK members who did not participate in acts of terrorism.

Parliament’s National Solidarity, Brotherhood and Democracy Committee, set up exclusively for the terror-free Türkiye initiative, has recently wrapped up its work of hearing from all sides affected by PKK terrorism. The committee prepared a comprehensive report to guide Parliament on future bills. A report by the Türkiye newspaper quoting sources from the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party), says President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan would hold talks with security authorities and his aides to make a decision on future legal processes and issue instructions for new bills by April if the intelligence authorities certify full disarmament of the PKK and its withdrawal from regions it occupied in Iraq’s north.

The terror-free Türkiye initiative was launched in 2024 by government ally Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) when its leader, Devlet Bahçeli, implied that the government should facilitate access to the terrorist group PKK’s jailed ringleader, Abdullah Öcalan, so that he could call on the PKK to lay down arms. Bahçeli’s proposal was endorsed by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who had earlier hinted at the initiative with messages of unity between Turks and Kurds. The PKK has long justified its campaign of terrorism as a fight for the rights of Kurds. Both Bahçeli and Erdoğan have repeatedly said that ending terrorism and maintaining unity were essential for Türkiye’s "home front” in the face of Israeli aggression in the region, pointing to the fact that Israel may target Türkiye next as part of its expansionist policies. Öcalan responded positively to Bahçeli’s call and urged the PKK to lay down arms. In July 2025, the PKK started the disarmament process with a ceremony in northern Iraq.

"This is not like 2013 or any other process,” Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş said earlier this month, referring to government-sponsored efforts in the past to end PKK terrorism. The "reconciliation process,” as it was known, sought to curb the PKK’s influence on the Kurdish community and address the rights issues the terrorist group exploited. It ultimately collapsed in a few years, but Türkiye pursues a more dedicated approach to the matter now. Unlike the previous process, where the PKK consented to a unilateral "truce,” the group this time agreed to dissolve itself. Yet, full dissolution is yet to be confirmed.

Kurtulmuş, who also chairs the terror-free Türkiye committee at Parliament, said another failure in ending the existence of the PKK would inflict a heavy toll on "politics.” "We may face a direr situation. We are now going through times of conflict in the region, and there are circles ready to stoke the burning fire,” he said.

"Nothing is incidental in this region. The process, which began with the U.S. invasion of Iraq, triggered another process for ethnic and sectarian division. Many countries suffered as a consequence. We have to revert this. Türkiye paid a heavy toll in terrorism, and we have to act swiftly. Zionism is raising the stakes, and we cannot ignore this. They try to deal a final blow to the region. They tried it with civil wars in Lebanon and Syria, and they tried it with swift regime changes in the region. They planned the final stage of their plan by targeting Gaza. The Greater Israel Project’s main target is Türkiye. So, we have to reinforce the country, the home front,” he said.

He noted that Türkiye already had laws for offering lenient sentencing for members of terrorist groups cooperating with authorities. "But it is the first time that a terrorist group has decided to dissolve itself. Thus, we need new regulations. We agreed on legal proceedings for members of the group if they apply for lenient sentencing or parole, to have a court record. This will prevent the perception that (PKK members) would benefit from an amnesty. Sentencing will remain, but they will be released based on parole conditions if they turn themselves in and renounce membership of the PKK,” he said.