The Kurdish Workers' Party (PKK) will begin disarming on Friday, which could end one of the longest armed conflicts in the Middle East, Bloomberg reports.

According to the Hurriyet newspaper, a group of PKK militants will hand over their weapons at a ceremony in the Kurdish autonomous region of Iraq. Representatives from Turkey, the central government of Iraq, and the Kurdish autonomous region are expected to observe the process. This step will be the first real stage of disarmament since May, when the PKK announced its intention to disband its armed forces and end its nearly 40-year armed struggle against the Turkish state.

The end of the conflict could also contribute to Turkey's economic growth — experts estimate that the country has lost about $1.8 trillion over the years of conflict, including lost economic opportunities due to military spending.

The final scope of the process is still unclear: Turkish authorities have called for complete disarmament within five months, but not all PKK armed units have confirmed their participation.

PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan, who has been serving a life sentence in solitary confinement on Imrali Island since 1999, called the disarmament process “a transition from a phase of armed conflict to a phase of democratic politics and law” in a video message on Wednesday.

The PKK, founded in 1984 and advocating autonomy for the Kurds, is recognized as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the United States, and the European Union. According to various estimates, the conflict has claimed the lives of more than 40,000 people, and armed clashes have often spilled over into Iraq, Syria, and Iran.