Kurdistan National Congress condemns attack on Sulaymaniyah International Airport!

ANF
NEWS DESK
Monday, 10 Apr 2023, 07:49

The Kurdistan National Congress (KNK) issued a statement to condemn the attack on Sulaymaniyah International Airport.

The statement said: "The occupying Turkish state attacked Sulaymaniyah International Airport in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq on 7 April 2023. The constant attacks of the Turkish state on South Kurdistan (northern Iraq) violate the principle of sovereignty and international law, and these unprovoked acts of military aggression are a continuation of the non-stop persecution and massacres of the Kurdish people and endless attacks on the achievements of our people despite war and relentless oppression. The international community and, first and foremost, the Kurdish people and the political parties and groups in Kurdistan, must speak out against these attacks, condemn them without reservation, and make sure they do not go unrecognised and unpunished."

The statement added: "The Turkish state and the racist AKP-MHP regime led by authoritarian President Recep Tayyip Erdogan are hostile to any assertion of Kurdish identity and openly target the achievements of the Kurdish people in all parts of Kurdistan and throughout the world. We know very well that, with presidential and parliamentary elections approaching in Turkey, Erdogan is in a very difficult position as many in the country have grown weary of his rule after two decades of strife and extreme corruption, and he now wants to carry out attacks against the Kurdish people, their movements, and their leaders to rally support in advance of elections, and public opinion, the international community, and especially the political opposition in Turkey should be aware of this and take a strong stand against this aggression and brutality."

The KNK said it does "not accept, under any circumstances, any legitimisation of the attacks by the Turkish state. Furthermore, we would like to call attention to the statement of Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Spokesperson Jotiar Adil, who placed blame for the attack on the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK). Adil, as a representative of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), cannot impose his party’s politics in the name of the regional government, and his statement was highly inappropriate. It is now necessary to publicly, unambiguously, and unreservedly condemn the attacks of the Turkish state and take a strong stand against this aggression rather than hold the PUK and all Kurds responsible. The use of the name of the KRG in such a way is unacceptable, and no one can remain silent in the face of such hostility, let alone legitimise it. Every such statement emboldens the occupying Turkish state to commit future massacres."

The KNK once again called on "the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS, the United Nations, the European Union, and all democratic institutions and Kurdish and Kurdistani political parties and groups to harshly condemn these attacks and take a stand against this aggression."