Kurdish militant group PKK declares ceasefire with Turkey
Ankara: The outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) has declared a ceasefire with Turkey, ending over four decades of armed conflict. The announcement follows an appeal from the group’s jailed leader, Abdullah Ocalan, urging the PKK to disband and abandon its insurgency.
The PKK’s executive committee confirmed the ceasefire in a statement released by the pro-PKK ANF news agency. "To facilitate the implementation of leader Apo’s call for peace and a democratic society, we are declaring a ceasefire effective immediately," the statement read, using a common reference for Ocalan. The group also expressed its commitment to following his directives.
The PKK, designated a terrorist organisation by Turkey, the United States, and the European Union, has been engaged in an armed struggle since 1984, demanding greater autonomy for Turkey’s Kurdish population, which constitutes nearly 20% of the country’s 85 million people.
Ocalan, who has been imprisoned since 1999, has been involved in past peace efforts, but negotiations collapsed in 2015, leading to renewed violence. The latest development follows an unexpected peace initiative proposed in October by a nationalist ally of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, suggesting a resolution if Ocalan renounced violence.
While Erdogan supported the initiative, his government simultaneously intensified crackdowns on opposition figures, resulting in the arrests of several politicians, activists, and journalists.
Following meetings with Ocalan at his prison on Imrali Island, the pro-Kurdish DEM party conveyed his message on Thursday, calling for the PKK to lay down arms and dissolve.
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55-bed free palliative care centre to open near Bengaluru’s Nelamangala
Bengaluru: A new 55-bed palliative care centre for terminally ill patients, named the Nemmadi Centre for Palliative Care, will be inaugurated near Nelamangala on Sunday. The facility will offer all services completely free of cost.
According to a report published by Deccan Herald on Saturday, the centre has been set up by the Sukruthi Charitable Trust in collaboration with Rotary Bangalore Midtown. Around Rs 20 crore has been invested in the project, which will operate without a billing counter, ensuring that families do not have to pay for treatment.
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The centre will provide comprehensive palliative care, including medical support, counselling for patients and their families, and bereavement care. The facility aims to help families cope with the physical and emotional challenges of caring for terminally ill patients.
“A cornerstone of the project was the generous donation of land by former MLC E Krishnappa, which made the centre possible,” DH quoted Palani Loganathan as saying.
The inauguration ceremony will be attended by Madhusudan Sai, founder of the Sri Madhusudan Sai Global Humanitarian Mission, Karnataka Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao and Rajya Sabha MP Dr C.N. Manjunath who also serves as the chief medical advisor to the centre will also be present, along with several senior government officials and healthcare leaders.
