A parliamentary commission overseeing the ongoing terror-free Türkiye project is set to convene on Nov. 18 for the 17th time, during which senior security and intelligence brass will update the members of the process.
The National Solidarity, Brotherhood and Democracy Commission will meet after two weeks under the leadership of Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş. Last week’s meeting had to be canceled after a Turkish cargo plane crashed in Georgia and killed 20 troops on board.
Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya, Defense Minister Yaşar Güler and National Intelligence Organization (MİT) President İbrahim Kalın will join the panel meeting and inform the members of the PKK’s disarmament and dissolution process since their last presentation to the commission on Aug. 8.
Another important discussion will be on whether a team from the 48-member panel should pay a visit to jailed PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan in İmralı prison island upon a suggestion by Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahçeli.
The MHP chairman suggested that sending MPs to the İmralı prison island could “strengthen the process” and said the MHP is “ready to participate” in such a delegation.
The planned visit is part of the government’s “terror-free Türkiye” initiative. Under the campaign, PKK has declared a ceasefire, laid down arms, disbanded its forces and announced withdrawal from Türkiye to northern Iraq.
Parliament Speaker Kurtulmuş previously said a delegation could visit İmralı if approved by a “qualified majority” of at least 31 votes.
The commission currently holds 22 seats for the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), five for the Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) and four for the MHP, meeting that threshold. The position of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), with 11 members, remains unclear.
PKK withdraws from key area in northern Iraq
In the meantime, PKK announced its decision to withdraw its members from the Zap region, a key border in northern Iraq.
In a statement late on Nov. 16, PKK said the withdrawal results in complete elimination of a risk of conflict, describing the move as a “significant practical contribution” to the terror-free Türkiye project.
