Shafaq News- Al-Sulaymaniyah
The Kurdistan Green Party filed a formal complaint with Iraq’s Parliament on Sunday seeking an investigation into alleged environmental damage in the Kurdistan Region and other parts of Iraq linked to cross-border activities from Turkiye, party leader Malako Baziani said.
Baziani told a press conference that the complaint seeks a parliamentary and technical investigation to determine the nature and scale of any damage, its causes and those responsible.
He said evidence, reports and other information available to the party indicated that the activities may have harmed forests, water resources, ecosystems and biodiversity in parts of the Kurdistan Region and elsewhere in Iraq.
“The Kurdistan Region’s environment is an integral part of Iraq’s environment and natural wealth,” Baziani said, arguing that protecting it is a national responsibility encompassing land, surface and groundwater, and biodiversity.
The complaint cites Articles 33 and 114 of the Iraqi Constitution, which cover environmental rights and shared federal-Regional responsibility for environmental policy, as well as Environmental Protection and Improvement Law No. 27 of 2009.
The party asked Parliament to formally register the complaint, refer it to the relevant committees and preserve evidence including photographs, recordings, maps, data and technical reports for expert assessment.
It also called for the environment minister and other relevant government officials to appear before Parliament and explain measures taken to protect natural resources in the Kurdistan Region and across Iraq.
Baziani urged the federal and Kurdistan Regional governments to prepare a joint technical assessment of the alleged environmental impact.
If an investigation confirms environmental damage or legal violations, he said, Baghdad should take diplomatic and legal action toward the Turkish government to stop the damage, address its effects and prevent its recurrence.
The party also called for Iraq to use available international legal and diplomatic mechanisms to protect its environmental and water rights in disputes involving transboundary water resources.
Read more: Kurdistan’s forests under threat: War, climate, and efforts to rebuild
Turkiye maintains military positions in parts of northern Iraq as part of its campaign against the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), a presence that has repeatedly drawn objections from Baghdad over Iraqi sovereignty.
The Turkish military is currently moving toward a gradual withdrawal from the Bashiqa-Zilkan base near Mosul. Baghdad and Ankara agreed in September to transfer the base to Iraqi control under an agreed mechanism and timetable, and Turkiye’s Defense Ministry confirmed the planned handover on Oct. 1. No date has been announced for its completion.