After 40 years of armed struggle against the Turkish state, the outlawed Kurdish PKK will hold a ceremony on Friday to mark a symbolic first step in laying down its arms.The disarmament process will start under tight security in Iraqi Kurdistan and is expected to take all summer.

The move comes in response to a historic call by jailed PKK founder Abdullah Ocalan in February, urging them to end their decades-long insurgency and embrace democratic means to defend the rights of T

PKK fighters were to begin laying down their weapons at a ceremony in Iraqi Kurdistan Friday, two months after the Kurdish rebels ended their decades-long armed struggle against the Turkish state. The disarmament ceremony marks a turning point in the transition of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) from armed insurgency to democratic politics,