Barzani warns ‘restraint also has limits’ after strikes on Kurdistan Region

ERBIL — Kurdish leader Masoud Barzani issued a stark warning Sunday to armed groups attacking the Kurdistan Region, saying “restraint also has limits” and calling on the Iraqi government, parliament and the Coordination Framework to intervene and stop the strikes.

“Throughout history, the people of Kurdistan have never been in favor of war and have always desired peace and coexistence,” Barzani said in a statement addressed to the public. “If war was imposed on them, they defended themselves and their rights.”

Barzani expressed alarm at groups operating under the banner of “resistance” that use what he called “baseless pretexts and slogans” to justify attacking civilian sites, economic infrastructure and Peshmerga bases, describing the actions as “clear provocation and aggression” against citizens’ rights and the region’s stability.

“The Peshmerga has never accepted oppression or force from any side, and this provocation and the disruption of the stability of the Kurdistan Region and the security of citizens by these groups cannot and should not continue,” he said, warning that “the continuation of this provocation will lead to bad consequences.”

He called specifically on the Coordination Framework — the Shia political alliance that dominates the Iraqi government and under whose umbrella many of the attacking factions operate — to take the matter seriously and put a stop to the violations.

Barzani offered condolences to the families of those killed in recent attacks, which overnight claimed the life of Walat Tahir, a 31-year-old security employee at Erbil International Airport who leaves behind two children, and a Komala Peshmerga fighter killed in a missile strike on opposition bases near Sulaymaniyah. Three airport workers and two Komala fighters were also wounded.