Abdullah Ocalan, the founder of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), issued a historic call to the group to disarm as part of a new path towards a peace agreement with the Turkish state.
On a plane back to Turkey following his capture in 1999, Mr Ocalan said he loved his country and “would serve it if required.” Decades later, the group remains one of Turkey's major national security issues.
Here is a list of key dates in the conflict.
1974: The PKK was formed as a clandestine Marxist-Leninist group by left-leaning Kurdish students led by Mr Ocalan.
In 1978, it held its first congress at a teahouse near Diyarbakir, establishing itself as an organisation with the aim of creating an independent Kurdistan in the north-east of Turkey.
1982: The group established its first training camp in the Bekaa Valley with support of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO).
August 1984: PKK carried out its first attacks in south-east Turkey, killing two soldiers. Fighting escalates over the following years and the group starts using bases in the Kurdish region of northern Iraq as refuge.
September 1998: Mr Ocalan flees his base in Syria after it signed the Adana Agreement with Turkey which committed Damascus to ending support for the group. PKK's main headquarters were also moved to the Qandil mountains of northern Iraq following the leader's departure from Syria.
February 15, 1999: Turkish special forces captured Mr Ocalan from Kenya. Bound and blindfolded, he was flown to Turkey.
June 1999: Mr Ocalan was tried and sentenced to death but the sentence was reduced to life imprisonment when Turkey abolished the death penalty in October 2002.
Following his capture, the PKK announced a unilateral ceasefire which ended in 2004.
2003: In an effort to work towards European Union membership, Turkey introduces legislative and constitutional reforms that increase Kurdish political and cultural rights, allowing for greater use of the Kurdish language. As prime minister, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan took a more liberal course with regards to the Kurds.
2010: Secret talks were held in Oslo between Turkish intelligence officers and PKK representatives. Talks break down.
Summer 2012: Fighting reaches new intensity. Turkish authorities round up Kurdish activists.
In October, Mr Ocalan and government representatives open talks while imprisoned Kurdish activists hold hunger strike. Kurdish militants end hunger strike in response to an appeal from Mr Ocalan the following month, opening way for talks.
March 21 2013: Mr Ocalan announces ceasefire and orders his fighters to withdraw from Turkish soil.
2015: The rise of ISIS in neighbouring Iraq and Syria led to the emergence of the YPG as a force fighting against the extremist group, taking control of areas near the Turkish border. Ankara views the YPG as the Syrian offshoot of the PKK.
In March, Mr Ocalan urged the PKK's leadership to disarm. The leadership in Qandil did not follow the call.
In July, the ceasefire collapsed, unleashing the bloodiest period in the conflict and resulting in extensive destruction in urban areas of south-east Turkey.
June 2020: After alleged attacks by the PKK on Turkish bases, Turkey launched Operations Claw-Eagle and Claw-Tiger, including air and land campaigns on the group in the Kurdish areas of Iraq. The operations spark criticism from the Iraqi government, labelling them an attack on the country's sovereignty. The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) also expressed concern over civilian casualties but neither Baghdad nor Erbil stop Ankara from continuing and mounting bases.
February 2021: Turkey sent a military mission to rescue 13 nationals captured by the PKK. It failed and all of the captives were found dead, with Ankara blaming their deaths on the PKK. The group said the captives were killed by Turkish bombing. A US State Department statement did not blame the PKK, increasing the rift between Ankara and Washington.
July 2024: Iraqi government announced a ban on the PKK and issued instructions for the group to be described as the "banned Kurdistan Workers' Party" in all official correspondence. It marked the most significant statement from Baghdad with regards to the PKK's status in the country. Iraq has not designated it a terrorist group.
October 2024: PKK claimed responsibility for an attack on a defence company near Ankara that killed five people and injured 22 others.
Tips on buying property during a pandemic
Islay Robinson, group chief executive of mortgage broker Enness Global, offers his advice on buying property in today's market.
While many have been quick to call a market collapse, this simply isn’t what we’re seeing on the ground. Many pockets of the global property market, including London and the UAE, continue to be compelling locations to invest in real estate.
While an air of uncertainty remains, the outlook is far better than anyone could have predicted. However, it is still important to consider the wider threat posed by Covid-19 when buying bricks and mortar.
Anything with outside space, gardens and private entrances is a must and these property features will see your investment keep its value should the pandemic drag on. In contrast, flats and particularly high-rise developments are falling in popularity and investors should avoid them at all costs.
Attractive investment property can be hard to find amid strong demand and heightened buyer activity. When you do find one, be prepared to move hard and fast to secure it. If you have your finances in order, this shouldn’t be an issue.
Lenders continue to lend and rates remain at an all-time low, so utilise this. There is no point in tying up cash when you can keep this liquidity to maximise other opportunities.
Keep your head and, as always when investing, take the long-term view. External factors such as coronavirus or Brexit will present challenges in the short-term, but the long-term outlook remains strong.
Finally, keep an eye on your currency. Whenever currency fluctuations favour foreign buyers, you can bet that demand will increase, as they act to secure what is essentially a discounted property.
GIANT REVIEW
Starring: Amir El-Masry, Pierce Brosnan
Director: Athale
Rating: 4/5
Results:
6.30pm: Maiden Dh165,000 2,000m - Winner: Powderhouse, Sam Hitchcott (jockey), Doug Watson (trainer)
7.05pm: Handicap Dh165,000 2,200m - Winner: Heraldic, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar
7.40pm: Conditions Dh240,000 1,600m - Winner: Walking Thunder, Connor Beasley, Ahmed bin Harmash
8.15pm: Handicap Dh190,000 2,000m - Winner: Key Bid, Fernando Jara, Ali Rashid Al Raihe
8.50pm: The Garhoud Sprint Listed Dh265,000 1,200m - Winner: Drafted, Sam Hitchcott, Doug Watson
9.25pm: Handicap Dh170,000 1,600m - Winner: Cachao, Tadhg O’Shea, Satish Seemar
10pm: Handicap Dh190,000 1,400m - Winner: Rodaini, Connor Beasley, Ahmed bin Harmash
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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