The mountains of northern Iraq have for years been a sanctuary for Kurdish militants fighting a decades-long insurgency against the government in neighboring Turkey.

Kurdish militants who have waged a 40-year insurgency in Turkey declared a ceasefire on Saturday in what could mark a significant boost to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government, two days after their imprisoned leader called for the group to disarm.

The Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militia on Saturday declared an immediate ceasefire, two days after its jailed leader Abdullah Ocalan called on fighters to lay down their arms and dissolve the group.

The group, the P.K.K., made its declaration days after its long-imprisoned leader urged the movement to disarm and disband, but there are still many questions about the prospects for ending 40 years of deadly conflict.

Residents in Diyarbakir, Turkey's largest Kurdish-majority city, said on Sunday that the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party's (PKK) decision to heed its jailed leader's call for peace was correct and prosperity would follow if the decades-old conflict ended.

Militants from the Kurdistan Workers' Party have declared a ceasefire, in what may represent a significant political breakthrough for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

Syrian Kurds gathered this week to listen to a message from jailed PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan Outlawed Kurdish group the PKK has declared a ceasefire with Turkey after its jailed leader Abdullah Ocalan called on the movement to lay down its arms and dissolve.

The militants’ ceasefire announcement could mark a significant boost to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government.

Outlawed Kurdish militants Saturday declared a ceasefire with Turkey following a landmark call by jailed PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan asking the group to disband and end more than four decades of armed struggle.