released statements against peace with the PKK and the latter was reported to have supported a military solution to the conflict. Ahmet Türks assistance at the press conference was heavily criticized by the Turkish authorities and the ceasefire ended after Turkish troops launched an attack on 19 May 1993, in which 13 members of the PKK were killed. On 24 May 1993, the PKK ambushed and killed 33 Turkish soldiers and 5 civilians on the highway from Elazığ to Bingöl. On 8 June, Öcalan officially announced the end of the ceasefire. Aftermath In August 1993, Öcalan claimed that the failure of the peace process envisaged by the PKK during İsmet Sezgin tenure as Minister of the Interior, prevented him to assume as prime minister. After he was captured and tried in 1999, he based his defense also on the cease fire of 1993. See also Kurdish-Turkish peace initiatives 1991-2004 References Ceasefires Kurdish–Turkish peace process Kurdistan Workers' Party