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Ocalan's Message to SDF: A Democratic Solution Within a New Constitution

Syrian Kurds during a demonstration in Qamishli on February 15, demanding the release of Ocalan on the 26th anniversary of his arrest (AFP).
Syrian Kurds during a demonstration in Qamishli on February 15, demanding the release of Ocalan on the 26th anniversary of his arrest (AFP).
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Ocalan's Message to SDF: A Democratic Solution Within a New Constitution

Syrian Kurds during a demonstration in Qamishli on February 15, demanding the release of Ocalan on the 26th anniversary of his arrest (AFP).
Syrian Kurds during a demonstration in Qamishli on February 15, demanding the release of Ocalan on the 26th anniversary of his arrest (AFP).

Abdullah Ocalan, the imprisoned leader of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), has sent a message to the leadership of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), urging them to support a legal resolution to the Kurdish issue through the drafting of a democratic constitution for Syria.

Tulay Hatimogullari, co-chair of Türkiye’s pro-Kurdish Democracy and Equality of Peoples Party, stated that Ocalan is preparing a proposal to address the Kurdish issue in Syria, Türkiye, Iraq, and the broader region.

She emphasized that his plan prioritizes a legal and democratic resolution, rejecting violence and conflict. The message has been delivered to the Kurdistan Democratic Society Congress, the Kurdish National Congress in Europe, and the SDF, which is led by the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) in northern Syria.

According to party spokesperson Ayshe Gul, Ocalan recently sent messages from his prison cell to three key entities: the SDF in northeast Syria, PKK leadership in the Qandil Mountains of Iraq, and Kurdish political organizations in Europe. However, the specific content of these messages has not been disclosed.

Ocalan was expected to call on PKK militants to disarm on February 15, coinciding with the 26th anniversary of his arrest in Kenya in 1999. This initiative was part of a proposal made last October by Devlet Bahçeli, leader of Türkiye’s Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), a partner in the ruling coalition. However, the call has yet to materialize.

A delegation from the Democracy and Equality of Peoples Party visited Ocalan twice in prison, on December 28 and January 22. They later traveled to Iraq’s Kurdistan Region between February 16 and 19 to discuss Ocalan’s initiative with Kurdish leaders. Öcalan reportedly expressed his willingness to issue a call for the PKK to lay down its arms, in response to ongoing regional developments, particularly in Syria and Gaza.

The delegation is set to meet Ocalan again in his prison to update him on discussions with Turkish political parties and Kurdish leadership in Iraq. His anticipated statement—possibly a video message—could be broadcast from the Turkish Parliament during a session of his party’s parliamentary group, potentially initiating a new process to resolve the Kurdish issue in Türkiye and the region.

Türkiye considers the YPG-led SDF an extension of the PKK in Syria and continues to push for its integration into a unified Syrian army. Ankara has also warned of military action against Kurdish forces in northern Syria unless foreign fighters leave and local Kurdish fighters disarm to join the Syrian military.

Meanwhile, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov is set to visit Türkiye on Sunday to discuss developments in Syria and the Ukraine war with his Turkish counterpart, Hakan Fidan. After Ankara, Lavrov will head to Tehran for talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, focusing on Syria.

Lavrov’s visit follows his recent meeting with Fidan at the G20 foreign ministers’ summit in Johannesburg. Last December, Fidan, Lavrov, and Araghchi also met in Doha under the Astana peace process framework, where Türkiye, Russia, and Iran serve as guarantors.

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Arab World

Pakistan Mediating Libya Unity with US-led Push

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif receives Saddam Haftar in Pakistan in February last year (General Command)
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif receives Saddam Haftar in Pakistan in February last year (General Command)
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Pakistan Mediating Libya Unity with US-led Push

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif receives Saddam Haftar in Pakistan in February last year (General Command)
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif receives Saddam Haftar in Pakistan in February last year (General Command)

Pakistan has quietly begun mediating between Libya's rival eastern and western power centers, two Pakistani sources said, in a previously unreported Pakistani effort that would further raise its diplomatic profile if it succeeds.

The Pakistani involvement comes after observers have for months monitored a US-led push to find a diplomatic solution in Libya, which has been split between rival eastern and western administrations since a civil war that broke out in the years after the 2011 NATO-backed uprising toppled Muammar Gaddafi.

Pakistan has been central to separate mediation between the US and Iran this year, with its role repeatedly being credited by the Trump administration, and one of the Pakistani sources said the US was "fully aware and involved" in Islamabad's Libya role.

The effort was also being supported by Saudi Arabia, both sources said.

Both Pakistani sources said the efforts began late last year and both Libyan ‌sides ⁠requested its involvement. ⁠It was unclear to what extent Pakistan has been coordinating its efforts with other regional stakeholders.

UNITY PLAN

Any successful plan to reunify Libya would need to balance the vastly different interests of foreign patrons and resolve disputes over posts, election rules and oil revenues that have derailed past attempts, analysts said.

"The United States has been pushing hard in Libya," said Jalel Harchaoui, a contributor to Britain's Royal United Services Institute think tank, "but the format it ⁠is trying to impose is still loose and ill-defined."

A summary of a proposed "Libya Reunification ‌Plan", shared with Reuters, would set out a 36-month transitional power-sharing arrangement under ‌a body called the Government of National Consensus and Presidential Council.

The proposal – which one Pakistani source cautioned was still being discussed ‌in detail – would establish a transition period with Abdulhamid Dbeibah of the UN-recognized and western-based Libyan Government of National ‌Unity as prime minister and Saddam Haftar, deputy commander of the eastern-based Libyan National Army, as chairman of the Presidential Council.

The faction around Haftar's father, Khalifa Haftar, the commander-in-chief of the LNA, controls many of Libya's biggest oilfields and key infrastructure, and the proposed plan would hand him authority over the budget.

A Pakistani source said Pakistan would play "an active role in making sure this whole arrangement stays ‌in play", with details still being worked on.

PAKISTANI MEDIATION Last month, Pakistan's army chief Asim Munir met Saddam Haftar in Rawalpindi – a meeting that was followed days later by Haftar's ⁠visit to Washington, where ⁠he met with Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

The State Department said in a statement at the time that Rubio welcomed Libyan leaders' efforts to overcome divisions and reaffirmed US support for Libyan unity.

Pakistani officials have pursued defense ties with the eastern-based LNA, as Reuters reported in December, including the possible sale of JF-17 fighter jets and Super Mushshak trainer aircraft, despite a UN arms embargo.

But the rival western GNU also recently sought direct talks with Pakistan, according to an unreported document seen by Reuters.

Arab World

Macron Arrives in Syria as First Major Western Leader to Visit Country Under New Leadership

France's President Emmanuel Macron (L) is welcomed by Syria's Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani (R) as he arrives fo a state visit at the Damascus International Airport in Damascus on July 6, 2026. (AFP)
France's President Emmanuel Macron (L) is welcomed by Syria's Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani (R) as he arrives fo a state visit at the Damascus International Airport in Damascus on July 6, 2026. (AFP)
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Macron Arrives in Syria as First Major Western Leader to Visit Country Under New Leadership

France's President Emmanuel Macron (L) is welcomed by Syria's Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani (R) as he arrives fo a state visit at the Damascus International Airport in Damascus on July 6, 2026. (AFP)
France's President Emmanuel Macron (L) is welcomed by Syria's Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani (R) as he arrives fo a state visit at the Damascus International Airport in Damascus on July 6, 2026. (AFP)

French President Emmanuel Macron arrived Monday in Syria, making him the first major western leader to visit the war-torn country since the ouster of Bashar al-Assad in 2024. 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited April, but Macron is the first leader from western Europe or North America to do so. 

The French president’s visit comes during a period of relative calm in the Middle East after the monthlong war in Iran and Lebanon.  

He will travel next to Ankara, Türkiye, for the NATO summit, where Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa is also expected to attend and hold a high-profile meeting with US President Donald Trump. 

Syria’s state-run SANA news agency said Macron would visit with a business delegation to discuss regional security as well as business and investment opportunities. 

Macron was greeted at Damascus airport by Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani. 

Macron hosted al-Sharaa in Paris in May 2025, where he urged European and US leaders to lift longstanding sanctions on Damascus. Most of those sanctions had since been lifted. 

Arab World

Sudan Gold Mine Collapse Kills 15 Miners

Workers break rocks at a gold mine near Abu Delelq in Gadarif State, Sudan. (Reuters)
Workers break rocks at a gold mine near Abu Delelq in Gadarif State, Sudan. (Reuters)
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Sudan Gold Mine Collapse Kills 15 Miners

Workers break rocks at a gold mine near Abu Delelq in Gadarif State, Sudan. (Reuters)
Workers break rocks at a gold mine near Abu Delelq in Gadarif State, Sudan. (Reuters)

A partial collapse in a decommissioned gold mine in northern Sudan has killed 15 miners, a state company said on Monday.

The miners had snuck into the shut-down Mohamed Tawfiq mine, in Wadi Halfa near the Egyptian border, when "parts of the mine collapsed... killing 15 miners and injuring one," the Sudanese Mineral Resources Company said.

Since war erupted in April 2023 between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, both sides' war efforts have been largely funded by Sudan's gold industry, in addition to foreign backers.

The war has devastated Sudan's already fragile economy and left much of the country out of work, pushing many into a dangerous gold rush.

Artisanal and small-scale gold mining, which takes place in unofficial zones or decommissioned mines, accounts for the majority of gold extracted.

These mines lack proper safety measures and use hazardous chemicals that often cause widespread illness in nearby areas.

Even before the war pushed 25 million Sudanese into acute food insecurity, artisanal mining employed more than two million people, according to industry figures.

Africa's third-largest country is one of the continent's top gold producers, and this year SMRC reported a "five-year high" in production of 70 tons in 2025.

But officials say much of the gold is smuggled across Sudan's borders.

Of last year's 70 tons, only "20 tons were exported through official channels", army-aligned Finance Minister Gibril Ibrahim told AFP.