The handover of weapons by the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in Iraq, following its decision to disband, should be completed within a few months, a spokeperson for Turkey's ruling AK Party said late on Wednesday.

The Kurdish militant group PKK will begin laying down its arms on Friday, marking the start of a disarmament process aimed at ending one of the Middle East’s longest-running insurgencies.

ANKARA — At least 12 Turkish soldiers died from methane gas poisoning in northern Iraq, the Turkish Defense Ministry said Monday.

Twelve Turkish soldiers have died after being exposed to methane gas while searching a cave in northern Iraq, the Turkish Ministry of National Defence said. At least 19 personnel were exposed to the gas during the search and clear operation on Sunday, and immediately taken to hospital. By Monday, 12 had died, the ministry said.

The Iraqi prime minister received on Tuesday the director of Turkey’s National Intelligence Organization to discuss security issues.

Nineteen soldiers were hospitalized after being exposed to methane gas during a cave search in Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdish region.

Turkey's Defense Ministry said five soldiers have been killed by methane gas in northern Iraq. They were searching a cave Sunday for the remains of a fellow soldier killed by Kurdish militants three years ago when 19 of them were exposed to the gas,

The Iraqi Ministry of Agriculture revealed that increased water flows from Turkey will allow for the expansion of agricultural areas in Iraq.

The Trump administration's May 2025 announcement in Riyadh, and subsequent executive order in June, lifting all sanctions on Syria and praising al-Sharaa as a "young, attractive guy. Tough guy. Strong past.