Barzani says residence targeted 5 times after drone downed near Erbil
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – Kurdish leader Masoud Barzani said on Sunday that his residence had been targeted five times in recent months, adding that he had “remained silent to avoid causing concern.”
On Saturday night, security sources told Reuters that air defenses shot down a drone near Barzani’s residence in Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI).
In a statement, Barzani, who heads the Kurdistan Democratic Party, said the KRI “has never been part of the conflicts, tensions, and wars witnessed in the region,” but accused unnamed groups of persistently targeting the region and the Peshmerga forces.
“These kinds of attacks are a clear act of hostility, grave injustice, and a blatant violation against the Kurdistan Region, and serious and decisive measures must be taken to stop them,” Barzani said.
He called on Iraqi authorities either to declare their inability to restrain “outlaw groups” or to intervene seriously to protect the state and prevent further “unjustified attacks.”
Earlier on Saturday, the house of Nechirvan Barzani, President of the KRI, was also targeted in the city of Duhok, according to local reports.
Separately, Mazloum Abdi, Commander-in-Chief of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), condemned the attack on Nechirvan Barzani’s house.
In a statement published by the SDF Media Center, Abdi said he spoke by phone with Nechirvan Barzani and expressed his strong condemnation of the attack, voicing solidarity with “the people and leadership of the Kurdistan Region in the face of threats and attacks.”
Abdi stressed that “the security and safety of Kurdistan is a responsibility for all,” adding that the region’s stability is vital for Kurds and the wider region.