13 member team to lead PKK withdrawal

ŞIRNAK - Doğan News Agency

The outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) militants talk as they gather to listen to the speech of the PKK leader on April 25, 2013 in the Qandil mountain, the PKK headquarters in northern Iraq. AFP PHOTO STR

A team of 13 members of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) will be directing the withdrawal of over 2,000 PKK militants from Turkey, Doğan news agency reported.

The withdrawal, set to begin on May 8, will be directed by high-ranking PKK district representatives that have been working on Turkish land.

The names on the list were Mehmet Tahir Kılıç, Ahmet Talve, Cihan Nazlıer, Mehmet Şah Yıldeniz, İbrahim Erbay, Fehmi Atalay, Emine Serinyel, Sabri Tori, Abdulkadir Zenger, Serdar Özdemir, Serdar Özdemir, İsmail Sürgeç and Mehmet Can Gürhan.

The PKK warned its members against overusing communicative devices, and instead instructed them to avoid villages and police stations so no provocations would occur. The preparation for the withdrawal should also take place through deep and safe valleys, according to organization instructions.

The withdrawal could take days, Doğan news agency reported, adding that the militants would be divided up into groups of 10 to 15 during the withdrawal. The groups will reunite again in camps near the Northern Iraqi district of Zaho. They will then be sent off to the various camps.

The militants positioned at the border, on the Northern Iraqi sides, will remain in their camps. The 13 members will then offer reports on the withdrawal, according to Doğan news agency.