Syria’s KDP criticizes partisanship in Iraqi Kurdistan

Shafaq News- Damascus

Some parties in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) parties are putting partisan interests ahead of the Kurdish cause, the Kurdistan Democratic Party-Syria (PDK-S) said on Sunday.

The party accused those unnamed parties of continuing to seek agreements and understandings with forces whose positions conflict with the KRI’s interests. Such conduct, alongside attempts at obstruction and escalation, could weaken a united Kurdish political position and harm broader Kurdish interests, it said. Pressuring constitutional institutions or restricting their role would also not serve the KRI’s stability, political process, or relations.

The PDK-S welcomed the Kurdistan Parliament’s session, calling it an important step toward protecting constitutional legitimacy, maintaining parliamentary and institutional continuity, and gaining international confidence during regional tensions.

The KRI’s constitutional and political standing resulted from decades of struggle and sacrifice, the statement said, crediting Iraq’s Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), led by Masoud Barzani, with a central role in establishing, protecting and strengthening that constitutional and political model. It also praised Barzani for putting Kurdish interests ahead of party considerations in seeking consensus and safeguarding stability.

Parliament resumed work on November 4, electing KDP candidate Vala Fareed as speaker, Christian representative Rami Nouri as deputy speaker and Turkmen representative Mona Qahwachi as secretary. The Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) said 52 of the legislature’s 100 members attended, despite official boycotts by the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), the New Generation Movement (NGM) and other parties.

PUK leader Bafel Jalal Talabani announced on November 5 that his party was withdrawing from the KRG’s ninth cabinet, rejecting the parliamentary proceedings and their outcomes.

Results announced by Iraq’s Independent High Electoral Commission gave the KDP 39 seats, the PUK 23, and NGM 15 in the October 20, 2024, election. Disagreements over government formation and senior posts prevented parliament from completing the election of its leadership after its inaugural session in December 2024, according to the KRG.

Read more: Kurdistan’s 10th cabinet: Interlocking alliances and persistent political differences