Kurdistan President commemorates Anfal campaign victims, calls for international recognition

Shafaq News / President of the Kurdistan Region Nechirvan Barzani affirmed, on Sunday, the ongoing efforts to gain international recognition for the Anfal operations committed by the former Iraqi regime, claiming the lives of tens of thousands of Kurds as genocide.

President Nechirvan Barzani remarked, "Today marks the painful thirty-sixth anniversary of the Anfal campaign, where more than 182,000 Kurdish children, women, and men fell victim to one of the most horrendous crimes and acts of genocide in history. These victims of the Anfal, who perished in 1988 at the hands of the Baghdad regime, are remembered Today with utmost respect and reverence."

He continued, "While the Iraqi Supreme Criminal Court recognized this crime as genocide, we renew our call to the Iraqi federal government to fulfill its duty in ensuring justice and compensating the victims. We also stress the necessity of providing better services to the resilient families of Anfal victims in all areas and not falling short in providing them with all possible support."

President Nechirvan Barzani continued, "We reassure the families of Anfal victims that we will continue until the end in the process of searching for the martyrs' remains and returning them to the homeland," emphasizing "our comprehensive efforts to gain recognition for the Anfal crime as genocide internationally and to ensure the prevention of such crimes anywhere in the world."

President Nechirvan Barzani stressed that "on this occasion, there is solidarity and unity among all parties and components in Kurdistan, which is an essential prerequisite for protecting and preserving the rights, achievements, federalism, and constitutional entity of the Kurdistan Region."

The Anfal campaign constituted one of the genocidal operations carried out by the former Iraqi regime against the people of Kurdistan, commencing in 1986 and reaching its peak in 1988, continuing until 1989.

The leadership of the campaign was entrusted to Ali Hassan al-Majid, known as "Chemical Ali," who held the position of Secretary of the Northern Bureau of the dissolved Ba'ath Party and acted as the military governor of the region, while former Iraqi Defense Minister Sultan Hashim was the military commander of the campaign.

On May 3, 2011, the Iraqi High Criminal Court classified the Anfal campaign as a "crime against humanity and genocide," and convicted Ali Hassan al-Majid, the former regime's defense minister, for supervising a chemical attack on the city of Halabja.

The court sentenced Ali Hassan al-Majid to death, and the execution was carried out on January 25, 2010.

The Kurdistan Regional Government designated April 14 of each year as an annual day to commemorate the victims of the Anfal operations.