Sunday, September 03, 2006
Kurdistan lowers Iraqi flag
Politics
Kurdistan president Massoud Barzani ordered the Iraqi national flag to be replaced with the Kurdish one in Kurdistan. A spokesman for the Kurdistan government said, “We consider that this flag represents the ideology of the Baath Party of Saddam Hussein, and this regime has collapsed." Iraq's Prime Minister Nuri Al Maliki's office issued a statement that not only defended the Iraqi national flag but implied that the Kurds' own banner was illegitimate.
COMMENT: Al-Maliki's response is likely to be taken as an insult and a challenge and will only inflame the situation. Barzani's action will be disturbing for any patriot in Iraq and indicates that the Kurds are likely to step up the pressure to become independent. This in turn means they will continue to push for inclusion of the oil-rich Kirkuk in Kurdistan. This will probably lead to further tension from the Turkomans and Sunni Arabs in Kirkuk. COMMENT ENDS.
Kurdistan president Massoud Barzani ordered the Iraqi national flag to be replaced with the Kurdish one in Kurdistan. A spokesman for the Kurdistan government said, “We consider that this flag represents the ideology of the Baath Party of Saddam Hussein, and this regime has collapsed." Iraq's Prime Minister Nuri Al Maliki's office issued a statement that not only defended the Iraqi national flag but implied that the Kurds' own banner was illegitimate.
COMMENT: Al-Maliki's response is likely to be taken as an insult and a challenge and will only inflame the situation. Barzani's action will be disturbing for any patriot in Iraq and indicates that the Kurds are likely to step up the pressure to become independent. This in turn means they will continue to push for inclusion of the oil-rich Kirkuk in Kurdistan. This will probably lead to further tension from the Turkomans and Sunni Arabs in Kirkuk. COMMENT ENDS.
