The Deputy Prime Minister of Iraq’s Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Qubad Talabani, Kurdistan Social Democratic Party leader Mohammad Haji Mahmoud, and the ulaymaniyeh (Silêmanî) Committee of the Communist Workers Party of Kurdistan (WP) have condemned a recent Turkish drone strike that killed two Kurdish women journalists Gülistan Tara and Hêro Bahadîn.
Describing the attack as an “unjustifiable crime”, Talabani stated that it constituted a serious breach of both international law and Iraqi sovereignty. He urged both Iraq’s federal government and the international community to take swift action to prevent further threats to civilian safety in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI).
Adding to the outcry, Muhammad Haji Mahmoud, leader of the Kurdistan Social Democratic Party, criticised the ongoing military and security coordination between Iraq and Turkey, warning that it disproportionately targets Kurdish communities and exacerbates regional instability. Mahmoud expressed concern that such actions could draw the Kurds into a wider conflict, with potentially devastating consequences.
The Sulaymaniyeh Committee of the Communist Workers Party of Kurdistan (WP) also condemned the attack, offering condolences to the families of the deceased journalists. The WP characterised the drone strike as a blatant violation of international law and called on the KRG to take decisive action to protect journalists operating in the region. The party urged the KRG to break its silence, stand firmly against these violations and ensure that international laws are upheld in the defence of Kurdish civilians and media workers.
