Kurdistan
Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) leader Masoud Barzani during a meeting with a delegation from Turkey’s pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) on July 11, 2025. Photo: Barzani office
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) leader Masoud Barzani on Friday indicated that he is willing to visit jailed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) leader Abdullah Ocalan.
A delegation from Turkey’s pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) met with Barzani and conveyed a request from Ocalan that he visit the imprisoned PKK leader.
In response, Barzani stated that “The visit will be carried out under appropriate circumstances,” according to a statement issued by KDP headquarters.
Ocalan has been imprisoned on Imrali Island since 1999.
With a renewed push for peace between the PKK and the Turkish state ongoing, Ocalan in June expressed his desire to meet with prominent Kurdish figures such as Masoud Barzani, Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani, and Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) commander Mazloum Abdi.
The delegation that visited KDP leader Barzani included veteran Kurdish politician Ahmet Turk, former lawmaker Leyla Zana, Sirri Sakik, DEM Party co-chair Tuncer Bakirhan, co-chair of the Democratic Regions Party Cigdem Kilicgun Ucar, DEM Party MP Meral Danis Bestas, and Berdan Ozturk, head of foreign relations for the DEM Party. They thanked Barzani for his support for the peace talks between the PKK and Ankara.
Barzani said that he “will not hesitate to do whatever is within his power to advance the resolution process.”
The DEM Party members were in the Kurdistan Region to attend a ceremonial disarmament of 30 PKK fighters, part of peace negotiations with Ankara to end four decades of conflict.
Founded in 1978, the PKK initially sought an independent Kurdish state but has since shifted its focus toward securing greater cultural and political rights for Kurds in Turkey.
In a video message released Wednesday, Ocalan called for the formation of a parliamentary commission to guide the current peace process.
A delegation from Turkey’s pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) met with Barzani and conveyed a request from Ocalan that he visit the imprisoned PKK leader.
In response, Barzani stated that “The visit will be carried out under appropriate circumstances,” according to a statement issued by KDP headquarters.
Ocalan has been imprisoned on Imrali Island since 1999.
With a renewed push for peace between the PKK and the Turkish state ongoing, Ocalan in June expressed his desire to meet with prominent Kurdish figures such as Masoud Barzani, Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani, and Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) commander Mazloum Abdi.
The delegation that visited KDP leader Barzani included veteran Kurdish politician Ahmet Turk, former lawmaker Leyla Zana, Sirri Sakik, DEM Party co-chair Tuncer Bakirhan, co-chair of the Democratic Regions Party Cigdem Kilicgun Ucar, DEM Party MP Meral Danis Bestas, and Berdan Ozturk, head of foreign relations for the DEM Party. They thanked Barzani for his support for the peace talks between the PKK and Ankara.
Barzani said that he “will not hesitate to do whatever is within his power to advance the resolution process.”
The DEM Party members were in the Kurdistan Region to attend a ceremonial disarmament of 30 PKK fighters, part of peace negotiations with Ankara to end four decades of conflict.
Founded in 1978, the PKK initially sought an independent Kurdish state but has since shifted its focus toward securing greater cultural and political rights for Kurds in Turkey.
In a video message released Wednesday, Ocalan called for the formation of a parliamentary commission to guide the current peace process.
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