Erbil, Kurdistan, Iraq (KRG.org) – French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius yesterday met with leaders of the Christian and Yezidi communities to convey his sympathy regarding the tragic events of the last few days.

After meetings with President Masoud Barzani and Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani, Foreign Minister Fabius visited the French Consulate General and French Institute, meeting with diplomats and the French community in Kurdistan. He was accompanied by the Head of the KRG Department of Foreign Relations, Minister Falah Mustafa, as well French Consul General Alain Guepratte.

The Foreign Minister then visited Ainkawa and met Bishop Bashar Matti Warda, of the Chaldean Archbishop of the Diocese of Erbil, and representatives of Christian families displaced from Mosul and elsewhere. He listened to the details of their suffering at the hands of terrorists and how they were forced to flee to avoid mass killing.

Foreign Minister Fabius then met with Yezidi representative Hazim Mir Tahsin Bag and with Baba Sheikh, the religious leader of the Yezidis. He expressed to the Yezidi leaders his government’s sympathy and condolences regarding the crimes committed against their people in Sinjar. The Yezidi representative described the tragedy caused by the terrorists.

On 9th August 2014, Yusuf Mohammed Sadiq the president of the Kurdistan Parliament met with representatives of international missions and consulates in Arbil, they discussed the political situation in Kurdistan and Iraq, with the deterioration of the security situation in the Kurdish areas outside the region and the war waged by the Peshmerga forces against terrorism, which led to the displacement of large numbers of the citizens of Kurdistan.

During the meeting, the president of the Kurdistan Parliament showed serious attempts with the United Nations and humanitarian organizations to accelerate the delivery of humanitarian aid to the displaced people at the areas that are exposed to attacks by armed groups, particularly the displaced Kurds, Yazidis, because their lives are in danger by terrorists in those areas, stressing that this war against the Kurdistan Region does not pose a threat to the region alone, but it constitutes a real threat to the region and the security and world peace because ISIS are a new model of terrorism and violence and terrorist has no certain limits to stand him, the international community must help us in our fight against terrorism, for this regard, We thank the United States, Britain and other countries that have shown a willingness to support us in the war against terrorism.

About the relations between the Kurdistan Region and Iraq, he said that there is cooperation in several areas

For their part, the representatives of international missions and consulates in Kurdistan introduced a number of suggestions and observations about the current situation in the region, pointing to the security and peace experienced by the province and they are performing their duties everyday on a regular basis and watching the situation closely and support the region in its war against terrorism, and at the end of the meeting Dr. Yusuf Mohammed Sadiq the president  of Kurdistan Parliament held a press conference explained the main points that were discussed during the meeting.

On 8/8/2014 Dr. Yusif Muhammad Sadiq, Kurdistan parliament president, received UN representative in Erbil. Dr. Yusif explained the current events in Kurdistan; especially the war between Kurdish forces and the terrorist groups named ISIS, and also clarified the life condition of Izadis and Christians in Musil, Shangal, and Shekhan.

Regarding the Christian and Yazidi families who were forced to leave their living places, Dr. Yusif said, “I want UN to support those families as soon as possible because they live in a very difficult situation”. He added,” Terror is a serious threat not only for Kurdistan but for all the countries in the region; it has an international dimension now and is really dangerous for international community. For this reason international community should cooperate with Kurdish Peshmarga in order to beat terrorists.

Showing his pleasure for the meeting and the information given by Kurdistan parliament president, Sokol Kondi, the representative of UN in Erbil said, “We as UN in the Kurdistan region never ignore the current events in Kurdistan and do our best to give necessary assistance to the refugees”. 

Respectable Mr. Tayyip Erdogan, the elected president of the Turkish Republic

On behalf of the Kurdistan Parliament _ Iraq, we congratulate you on your election as the twelfth President of the Turkish Republic.

We hope that your election inspires the peace process in Turkey and strengthens relations between the Turkish Republic and  Kurdistan region.

        Yusif Mohammed Sadiq

President of the Parliament of Kurdistan _ Iraq

                  11/8/2014

Salahaddin, Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRP,org) – Since the start of the campaign by the terrorist group ISIS to attack the Kurdistan Region last week, many countries have expressed their support to the KRG in its fight against the terrorism, and have also offered humanitarian aid to the tens of thousands of IDPs who have sought refuge in Kurdistan. 

US Vice President Biden, Germany Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, UK Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond, and Italian Foreign Minister Federica Mogherini all called President Barzani this week to show the support and solidarity of their countries for the Kurdistan Region in its fight against the terrorist group ISIS. 

French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius visited Erbil on Sunday and met with President Barzani. In a joint press conference following their meeting, President Barzani thanked the Unites States and France and other countries that have offered their support to the Kurdistan Region.

Erbil, Kurdistan, Iraq (KRG.org) – Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani congratulated current Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan upon the announcement of preliminary results indicating his victory in Turkey’s presidential elections. Prime Minister Barzani wished Prime Minister Erdogan, the Republic of Turkey, and its citizens continued success.

The Prime Minister expressed his hope that Turkey’s direct presidential elections will bring forth further development in Turkey, opening new policies and improvements in all fields. He also expressed his wish to see continued development and coordination, in various sectors, in the mutually beneficial relationship between Erbil and Ankara. Finally, Prime Minister Barzani reiterated his hope for a resolution of the Kurdish issue in Turkey and a successful conclusion to the peace process under the Erdogan presidency.

During the conversation, Prime Minister Erdogan thanked Prime Minister Barzani and reiterated his wish for further development and expansion in the relationship between Turkey and the Kurdistan Region.

Erbil, Kurdistan region of Iraq, (krp.org)- President Masoud Barzani received a French diplomatic delegation headed by the Foreign Minister of France, Mr. Laurent Fabius today in Erbil. During the meeting, President Barzani warmly welcomed the delegation and expressed his thanks to the government of France for their support of the Kurdistan Region. 

President Barzani during a press conference with Mr. Laurent Fabius discussed the latest political developments in Iraq and the security and military situation in the Kurdistan Region. President Barzani stated that the terrorists of ISIS will not be able to damage the relations between the Kurdistan Region of Iraq and our Arab brothers and that ISIS is a common enemy for all of Iraq and much beyond.

Washington Post Editorial Board

A NEW humanitarian and security crisis has erupted in northern Iraq, where the al-Qaeda-derived Islamic State borders territories controlled by Iraqi and Syrian Kurds. Since last weekend, tens of thousands of civilians have been trapped on a mountainside near the Iraqi town of Sinjar, which was captured by Islamic State fighters. The refugees, including an estimated 25,000 children, lack supplies of food and water and could perish in a matter of days unless a relief corridor is opened, according to the United Nations. Meanwhile, the extremist forces are threatening to capture Iraq’s two largest dams and are pressing toward Irbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan.

Both the potential human cost and the threat to U.S. interests are vastly greater than in the Gaza Strip, which has consumed the attention of Secretary of State John F. Kerry and senior White House officials in recent weeks. An Iraqi minority group concentrated in the contested area, the Yazidis, is facing nothing less than genocide at the hands of the Islamic State, which considers the sect heretical. Meanwhile, the strongest and most reliable U.S. ally remaining in the region, the Kurdistan government, is struggling to hold the line against Islamic State forces.

The Obama administration’s response to this emergency, however, has been listless. U.S. officials have reportedly authorized the direct supply of munitions to Kurdish forces, which have been attempting to retake Sinjar, and have coordinated attacks by the Iraqi air force against Islamic State targets. It has also pushed the Iraqi government to carry out a humanitarian air drop in the area where the Yazidi refugees are stranded, though the operation achieved only limited results, according to a report by The Post’s Loveday Morris.

Kurdish forces still suffer from the warped and outdated U.S. policy toward Iraq, which prioritizes maintaining a strong central government in Baghdad over aiding the secular, democratic and pro-Western Kurds. A Kurdish delegation that visited Washington last month seeking direct military aid to fight the Islamic State was rebuffed. Administration officials contend they cannot act without the consent and cooperation of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, even though his sectarian policies are largely responsible for returning the country to civil war.

President Obama dispatched some 800 U.S. personnel to Iraq earlier this summer in order to evaluate the Islamic State threat, protect the U.S. embassy and coordinate assistance. But the administration has refrained from major new aid initiatives or U.S. military action, saying that it first wants to see the formation of a broadly representative Iraqi government. That goal may not be achievable in the near future, or ever; meanwhile, the extremist Islamist forces continue to advance, both in Iraq and Syria.

Mr. Obama is right to deny new support to the Iraqi government as long as the toxic Mr. Maliki remains in office. But it can and should act immediately to address the humanitarian crisis in northern Iraq and to further support Kurdish forces, which face the Islamic state along a 600-mile border. If the Iraqi airlift of supplies to the stranded Yazidis is ineffective, the United States should consider other action to save the refugees. It also should supply Kurds with the heavy weapons they have requested and, if necessary, use U.S. air power to stop the Islamic State forces from advancing further.