A TURKISH parliamentary delegation has held talks with jailed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) leader Abdullah Ocalan.

Monday’s rare talks centred on the militant group’s decision earlier this year to disband and disarm, along with the implementation of an agreement that envisaged integrating Kurdish forces into a new Syrian army, according to a statement from the Turkish Grand National Assembly.

The PKK, designated a terrorist organisation by Turkey, Britain, the European Union and the United States, has waged an armed insurgency against the Turkish government since 1984. 

It initially sought an independent Kurdish state, later shifting to demands for autonomy and expanded rights within Turkey. The conflict has spilled into neighbouring Iraq and Syria.

The implementation of the March 10 agreement between Syria’s government and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces has largely stalled.

“The meeting concluded with positive outcomes aimed at strengthening social cohesion, brotherhood and advancing the process from a regional perspective,” according to a statement issued on Monday, which said that the three-member delegation had gathered “detailed declarations” from Mr Ocalan during the talks.

Media reports said the meeting on the prison island of Imrali, near Istanbul, had lasted for five hours.