Monday, January 31, 2011

Independence not yet an option for Kurdistan say observers

Erbil, Jan. 30 (AKnews) – A Sudan-like secession for the Kurdish region of Iraq is seen by many observers as an impossibility for the time being, while one voice in the opposition blames the Kurdish leadership for failing to make independence a reality in order to prepare ground for the question in the future.

In January Time Magazine placed the Kurdistan Region among the top 10 aspiring nations for independence in 2011 after Southern Sudan voted for secession this month.
 
The idea of a similar experience for the Iraqi Kurds sparks diverse views. The Arabs would rather think that the Kurds of Iraq do not want to secede from Iraq or else they would have been able to do that with US help.
 
Meanwhile, observers believe that the time neither is nor appropriate for the secession of the Kurds from Iraq.
 
Unlike the southern Sudanese people, the Kurds have their own government, parliament, president, armed forces, flag and even a draft constitution which they plan to put to a popular vote soon.
 
In both Sudan and Iraq many ethnic groups live and the two countries are both former British colonies. The Iraqi state was established by the British in 1926, Sudan by the Sudanese people with British consent in 1956.
 
There is the speculation that the US and west supported southern Sudan because they are mainly Christians and it may not support the Muslim Kurds in northern Iraq, but Kaiwan Azad Anwar, a history instructor in Sulaimaniyah University, thinks otherwise.
 
"It is true that there are Christians in southern Sudan, but it was actually the violence against those people by the Sudanese government that pushed the US and Europe to support them" said Anwar.
 
Anwar believes that there is no parallel between the Kurdistan Region and Sudan's Southern region because, despite lack of violence against the Kurds in northern Iraq, "Kurdistan has not called for secession so far, therefore, creating a similar atmosphere will drive Iraq towards turmoil and the regional countries will intervene in Iraq".
 
"It is not the time for the Kurds to ask for separation, though the internal conditions are suitable, it will end up at the loss of the Kurds if they decide to make such a demand"
 
A member of the Iraqi parliament Latif Mustafa, who is a member of the Kurdish opposition group Gorran, said it was not true to say that no one would support Kurdistan, the problem is we don't ask for separation, and as we don't, nobody would come to us to propose a referendum to secede from Iraq".
 
There is one very clear difference between Kurdistan and South Sudan, he says: "their leaders are loyal (to their people) and openly say it to the world, but our leaders not only don't demand secession but also are ashamed of talking about it".
 
"… They want to show that seceding from Iraq is the most evil crime" he says.
 
"In 1992, we asked for federalism and many people thought that it was a dangerous demand but it worked. Before the fall of the former Iraqi regime in 2003, there were calls to change our motto (from federalism) to independence and if it was to be made a political reality we would have been independent long ago" Mustafa said.
 
One big difference between the reality of the Kurdish region and southern Sudan is that the referendum in Sudan was part of an agreement in 2005 between the north and the south, which is not the case in Kurdistan. Quite the opposite, Iraqi Arab politicians vehemently oppose secession in Kurdistan.
 
When President of Kurdistan Region Massoud Barzani talked about self-determination in his party congress in November this year, it created a fuss among many Arab leaders. Some of them went so far as wondering whether the Kurds wanted federalism to prepare for independence from Iraq.
 
Farid Asasard, director of Kurdistan Strategic Studies Center (KSSC) says the constitution should grant the right of a referendum for secession to the Kurdish region. And the self-determination right has not been established in the current Iraqi constitution.
 
Another problem for the Kurds is that it is surrounded by countries like Iran, Turkey, and Syria that would not accept the separation of Kurdistan from Iraq, not only because they are against the division of Iraq, but because they have their own Kurdish regions which might want the same.
 
"After the withdrawal of the US forces from Iraq by the end of 2011, Kurdistan can proclaim independence if the situation in Iraq deteriorates," says Mohammed Bazyani, head of the Hoda Center for Strategic Research, "but the Peshmarga forces, the army, and security forces have to be united and the Kurdish political leadership provide an appropriate life for the people and pave the way for the purpose".

Dler Abdul Rahman, edited by Raber Younis Aziz

Sunday, January 30, 2011

Opposition group in Kurdistan calls for government reformation

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Erbil, Jan. 30 (AKnews) – A Kurdish opposition group, Gorran, has urged in a statement the government of the Kurdistan region to step down and called for regional elections to be held to replace the existing administration.listi hawpaymani u listi goran

Inspired by the uprisings in Tunisia, which have also spread across several other Arab countries, most notably Egypt, Jordan, Yemen, and Algeria, Gorran called for the Kurdish government and parliament to be disolved and for "free and fair" elections to be staged.

Gorran enjoys wide support in Sulaimaniyah city, Kuridstan's second largest city, where they headed the polls in the parliamentary elections. They have a significant minority of 25 seats in the 111-seat parliament of Kurdistan Region.

"As you can all see with your own eyes, the day for the fall of dictatorship regimes in most of the oppressing and closed countries of the world and the region has started" a statement by Gorran aired on its KNN satellite broadcaster said late last night.

"the people of Kurdistan were hoping that the authorities of the region take the opportunity of the emergence of this new experience (opposition) to democratize governance and to establish a real parliamentary system in addition to improving the quality of life of the people, creating jobs, developing opportunities for the youth, and nationalizing the security and defense services of the region and separating party influences from government authorities" the statement added.

While Gorran summarized its demands in 7 points which call for the toppling of the government, parliament, and the preparation of free and fair elections, it also called on all political parties and actors to show support for its demands as well as calling on the ruling parties to meet their "historical responsibilities" to implement the demands.

The group also called for the restoration of the government and people's properties "occupied by the parties and the officials" and the return of Kurdistan Region's constitution draft the final version of which was passed by the parliament in 2009.

Under the Kurdish constitution, Kurdistan is run by a parliamentary, presidential and democratic system. The territory of the Region, in addition to Erbil, Sulaimaniya and Dohuk provinces, includes some disputed areas which are to be determined by article 140 of the Iraqi constitution. Islam is identified as the majority creed and a major source for legislation. No law should contradict Islamic laws.

Immediately after the statement was aired on KNN, the presidency of Kurdistan and the two ruling parties responded to the call, describing the group as "vandalistic".

"Any change in the political system would be through the ballot boxes not through illegal and unconstitutional means," said a statement by the Kurdish Presidential Office, "because the current situation of Kurdistan was the outcome of a free and fair election."

A joint statement by the two ruling parties also accused Gorran of splitting the unity of the people of Kurdistan and the Kurdish Blocs Coalition (KBC) in Baghdad as well.

Gorran broke away in October 2010 from the KBC which brought together all Kurdish forces in Baghdad following disputes with the ruling parties over an Electoral Commission bill in the Kurdish parliament, and did not participate in PM Nuri al-Maliki's cabinet losing Kurds 8 seat's worth of government positions.

According to the points system (2.5 seats equaled 1 point) adopted by the Iraqi political forces to allocated government positions and ministries, where a public services ministry like electricity, and health was worth 2 points while lower-profile ministries like the Human Rights portfolio requires 1.5 points.

The joint statement also accused Gorran of adopting a "divisive attitude" which was dealt with by the ruling parties leniently to keep it "least damaging to the Kurdish forces and our people".

"Whatever lenient policies we practiced towards Gorran leaders, they were accompanied by efforts to solve the disputes with them," the statement added, "But it seems that the Gorran leaders have looked upon that lenience and the patriotic attitude as vide and weak"

The two major parties said they would counter any efforts to disrupt public order and the current situation of Kurdistan.

They said for any major or minor incidents in the streets, government offices, banks and other institutions, whether directly or indirectly resulting from Gorran's call, they would hold the party responsible and accountable, saying they "will subject them to legal punishment".

At the same time, the joint statement promised that the shortcomings and vices that the public are concerned about will be "definitely solved".

Raber Younis Aziz

Ka/AKnews

Sunday, January 30th 2011 11:42 AM

Sunday, January 23, 2011

Kurds in Brussels protest execution of Kurdish activists in Iran

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Brussels, Jan. 19 (AKnews) - A group of Kurds organized Tuesday a demonstration in the Belgian capital, Brussels, to protest the execution of a Kurdish activist on charges of links with an armed Kurdish group.  iran idam
About 100 people gathered outside the Iranian embassy in Brussels chanting slogans "No to executions", "Ahmadinejad is a terrorist" and "Freedom for political politicians" to protest the execution of Kurdish political prisoner Hussein Khezri.

Khezri, 28, was executed on January 15 in secret on charges of acting against the national security and working with the Free Life for Kurdistan Party, or (PJAK), an armed Kurdish group fighting for the freedom of Kurds in Iran.

An organizer of the demonstration Tuesday Kawe Ahangari called on the Iranian authorities to stop the "increasing" pressure on the Kurds in Iran.

Kurds make up 7% of Iran's about 72 million population. Khezri is the eight Kurdish activist to be executed by the Iranian authorities since early January this year.

According to the reports of international human rights organizations, the Iranian government executed last year at least 179 people. Iran ranks high on the list of the countries with frequent executions.
 
PJAK has promised to have a "strong response" to Khozri's execution.

"Iran never hesitates to carry out ethnic cleansing against the Kurds," Sherzad Kamangar, spokesman of PJAN, told AKnews Monday "if the Iranian state is not willing to listen to our demands and refuse to choose dialogue and peaceful means, then we will respond in the language that the state understands"

The Kurdish Associations Union (KAU) in France echoed the protests late Tuesday saying it will organize a demonstration outside the Iranian embassy in Paris next Friday.

Reported by Roni Alasor, edited by Raber Y. Aziz
RN/AKnews

Wednesday, January 19th 2011 12:41 PM

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

KDP drops lawsuits against newspapers

Dohuk, Jan. 17 (AKnews) - One of the major ruling parties of Kurdistan Region, the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) led by regional president Massoud Barzani, has dropped several lawsuits against newspapers and writers it accused of defamation. The move was welcomed by the media organizations.Nechirvan Barzani1

The issue of the lawsuits against newspapers and writers goes back to July 2010 after the Rozhname newspaper, the mouthpiece of an opposition group Gorran, accused the KDP and its ally Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) led by Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, of profiteering from smuggling oil into Iran.

Following a fuss between the ruling parties and Gorran, KDP filed an unprecedented lawsuit against Rozhname demanding 1 billion Iraqi Dinars in damages, (about US$800,000) on charges of defamation.

Hawlati and Awene, two other newspapers claiming to be independent were also among those the KDP raised claims against on charges "defamation" in one of Erbil courts. The KDP demanded damages of 500 million Iraqi Dinars from each newspaper.

KDP leader's deputy Nechirvan Barzani said in an interview with the local newspaper Rudaw's Monday issue that his party had decided to withdraw all lawsuits against the newspapers in Kurdistan as a "show of goodwill"

The withdrawal of lawsuits has been widely welcomed by the media organizations, in particular the independent media, and journalists centers.

"We believe that what happened is a very positive step to create bridges of understanding and trust between free media and journalists on the one hand, and the political parties on the other." Rahman Gharib, coordinator of the Metro Center to Defend Journalists in the Kurdistan, told AKnews.

Metro is an independent organization dedicated to  defending journalists and freedom of the press in the Kurdistan region.

Hadi Jallo Merei, of the Press Freedom Center in Iraq, says the decision to drop the lawsuits  in the Kurdistan is welcomed in the media in Baghdad and other Iraqi cities as well, calling at the same time for strengthening press freedom with a set of "decisions and actions" without elaborating.

This shows that there is good understanding of the fact that the media have the right to access to information, according to Merei.

The implications of the move by the KDP will be quite positive on the situation of the press in the Kurdistan region, Merei believes. He says the this signals a transition in the regional authorities concept of the role of journalists, so "this will facilitate the work of journalists."

Reported by Khudr Khallat, edited by Raber Y. Aziz

50 killed 150 injured in Tikrit blast

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Kirkuk, Jan. 18 (AKnews)  - The death toll of a suicide bombing in the city of Tikrit, 108 km north of Baghdad, Tuesday targeting a police recruiting center has risen to 50 deaths and 150 injuries, according to a source in the Iraqi Ministry of the Interior security source.taqinawa

The suicide attack is the first deadly attack in Iraq since the formation of the new Iraqi government on Dec. 21. No group has been officially blamed for the attack but fingers of accusation is are usually pointed at al-Qaeda.

"Fifty people have been killed and 150 others injured in the attack, and the final toll may change" said the source, declining to be named because he was not authorized to speak to the media.

Some 300 young men were lining up in front of a volunteer police center in Tikrit, the hometown of former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, when a suicide bomber wearing an explosive vest blew himself up among them.

The area has been sealed off by the security forces and the injured were being rushed to the hospital already full of dead and injured people. Initial reports previously pointed to at least 14 deaths and 86 casualties, but officials warned the figure would rise.

The province of Salahaddin is still the scene of frequent attacks by Sunni insurgents most prominently al-Qaeda. On Jan. 11, at least 6 Iraqi policemen were killed in a car bomb attack in Tikrit and several others weer wounded.

reported by Ammar Ali, edited by Raber Y. Aziz

Tuesday, January 18th 2011 1:45 PM

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Kurdistan: Intellectuals at loggerheads with clerics over freedoms and sanctities

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Erbil, Dec. 12 (AKnews) – Clerics and intellectuals in the Kurdistan region of Iraq are locked in a fight over freedoms and sanctities prompting both parties to resort to legal means to settle the conflict.

Intellectuals accuse clerics of inciting people against their freedom of thought and written expression, and of slander in their Friday sermons, while the clerics accuse them in turn of insulting Islam, and disregarding social norms and values.

More than 1,300 writers, artists, journalists, academics, and lawmakers have signed a bill they have prepared and submitted to the parliament of Kurdistan region calling for the regulating of Friday sermons.

Signatories to the bill say the aim of the project is to serve religion while at the same time maintaining public order and national security. "We believe that religion has to be conveyed to the people in a civilized way, without creating problems," the end of the bill reads.

KRG Minister of Endowments and Religious Affairs Kamil Haji Ali, says any cleric slandering anybody or discussing matters of current interest through harsh discourse in the Friday prayers will be interrogated.

"But unfortunately, the intellectuals have separated themselves as if the clerics are not educated and are not intellectuals. Don't clerics in their Friday sermons also talk about the right of self-determination, the environment, federalism, children's rights and diseases?" says the Islamic Movement of Kurdistan (IMK)'s affiliated minister.

According to the proposed bill, in any of the three provinces of the Kurdistan Region there will be three sermons in three major mosques and these sermons will be broadcast on TV and in other mosques live instead of different sermons in the different mosques.

Following the submittal of the bill to parliament, the Islamic Scholars Union voiced concern in a statement saying it was a restriction on freedom of though and speech. "…they should have worked for expanding freedom of expression and speech and the horizons of democracy rather than trying to suppress the voices of religious scholars"

"We did not expect people who think of themselves as elite to take such a step in trying to silence the voices of other humans" the statement read.

In the parliament of Kurdistan, the bill met with flat rejection by the Islamic parties and groups while other secular factions have not officially announced their positions.

"We believe the bill looks in no way realistic and it is another attempt to restrict freedoms in the Kurdistan Region" said Bayan Ahmed, an MP of the Kurdistan Islamic Union (KIU) faction in parliament. "Mosques have been serving people throughout history"

Ahmed Warti of the Islamic Movement of Kurdistan (IMK) believes a mosque in a particular quarter of a city has its own characteristics and their own territorial concerns to address in their Friday prayers, therefore the bill is not appropriate.

On Friday, an imam in one of the mosques in Erbil waved a book of poems by a Kurdish poet in the air attacking the writer and the publishing house saying it contained insults to religion and to God.

Erbil's Misdemeanor Court sentenced on Dec. 20 the chief editor of the Kurdish magazine to six-months imprisonment (lightened to three years of supervision) and a fine of 5 million Iraqi Dinars (about US$4,700) was imposed on the magazine because it published a poem that symbolically uses the names of prophets and was interpreted as insulting religion, and an erotic story translated originally from Arabic written some eight centuries ago by a Muslim writer.

Intellectuals say their writings, if not approved of by any actors, have to be responded to by civilized means like writings, not by inciting people against them in the mosques.

However, when a cleric published a book late December accusing some women's organizations and activists of not contributing to the solution of women's problems in the country and that that they defended norms and values that were alien to the Kurdish community, NGOs, women's rights activists and organizations were infuriated.

They organized demonstrations and called on parliament to restrict the clerics and said that such a book should never have been permitted by the ministry of culture.

In the demo, women activists raised banners that read "A Lost Truth and a Made Up Lie" referring to the title of the book by the cleric "A Lost Truth"

The cleric accuses, in his book, the women's organizations of urging self-burning and suicide among Kurdish women.

In an interview with AKnews the writer said he never incited anybody and did not judge anyone but depended on the women activists' own statements and writings to justify his viewpoint in the book.

"When you tell a woman not to accept anything from a male counterpart and when you say burning yourself is a sign of bravery and awareness, that encourages women to commit such acts" he said, referring to statements by some women activists.

While the intellectuals defend the bill that regulates Friday prayers and restricts sermons, they call for absolute freedom of written expression.

A Member of Parliament in the Kurdistan Islamic group (KIG) Ahmed Suleiman thinks that this is ironic because clerics and Islamic scholars are also a slate in the society and they have the right to criticism, expression and defense of their religion as well.

"It is their job to defend the religious values, faith and rituals" he says, "intellectuals have to realize that nobody has the power to manipulate the way of conducting Friday prayers by Muslims or the way of worship in other faiths."

He called on clerics and intellectuals to handle differences through dialogue, talks and conferences to converge ideologies.

Aso Karim of the dominant faction in the Kurdish parliament, the Kurdistani Alliance, says his bloc backs the rule of law and equality and the guarantee of public and individual freedoms.

"It is our job to regulate that and guarantee that these freedoms are not violated by anybody," he said.

Gorran (Change) lawmaker Rebaz Fattah says his bloc has not officially received the bill so that it cannot officially announce its attitude. "We have not officially convened to declare our position about the bill".

Raber y. Aziz
Ka/AKnews

Wednesday, January 12th 2011 3:59 PM

Monday, January 10, 2011

Rights group says "ongoing" genocide against Kurds in Syria

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Sulaimaniyah, Dec. 10 (AKnews) – A Kurdish rights group says Syria is carrying out genocide acts against the indigenous Kurds in the country behind a complete media blackout.Kurdocide CHAK

CHAK or Kurdocide Watch, a Stockholm-based rights watchdog, says it is planning a conference in the Swedish capital on Wednesday to uncover the persecutions of the Kurds of Syria.

Rights groups in Syria have warned that violence against the Kurds is increasing and the Stockholm-based watchdog says Syria's Kurdish region "is under ongoing genocide".

"Hundreds of thousands of Kurdish individuals in this country (Syria) are not seen as worth even Arab nationality, let alone Kurdish" said Azad Haidery of CHAK, "their children have no schooling rights. More than 50,000 children do shoe shining on the streets"

"Unfortunately, the least coverage by the media and European circles has been devoted to the west part of Kurdistan (Syrian Kurdish region), while the persecution of this Kurdish region is no less than the other Kurdish regions in Turkey and Iran, if not greater"

Though there are no official statistics to confirm the number of the Kurds in Syria, unofficial statistics suggest there are about three million of them, accounting for 10-17% of the population.

The majority of the Swedish parties are expected to attend the conference on Wednesday, in addition to Amnesty International, and many more human rights groups, according to Haidery.

CHAk has held conferences in Sweden on the persecution of Kurds of Turkey as well.

"We have also invited the foreign ministry of Sweden, but they have not replied to ups officially"

Haidery says renowned Turkish writer Ismail Besikci will also deliver a speech in the conference from Ankara by telephone. And Syrian eye witnesses will also participate to recount mass murders of the Kurds in the country.

The PEN Honorary Member has served 17 years in prison on propaganda charges stemming from his writings about the Kurdish minority in Turkey.

On Dec. 9, a Kurdish human rights organization (DAD) in Syria, said Kurdish recruits in the Syrian army were killed while doing military service in mysterious circumstances after the body of a Kurdish solder was delivered to his family the same day.

The family of recruit Mohammed Jalal Mohammed, received the body of their son who Syrian officers in his military unit said he died as a result of electric shock.

Families of the victims often claim their sons were exposed to torture and murder, citing traces and marks appearing on their recovered bodies.

Syrian authorities claim the cases are "accidents" or "suicides" without official investigations being conducted into the cases or the bodies being inspected by forensic experts.

In 2010, nine Kurdish soldiers were killed while on military duty in the Syrian army bringing the total number of Kurdish recruits killed in mysterious circumstances to 44 since 2004.

Reported by Khabat Nawzad, edited by Raber Y. Aziz

Monday, January 10th 2011 12:47 PM

Sunday, January 2, 2011

Illiteracy down to 16% in Kurdistan region

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Erbil, Dec. 28 (AKnews) – Illiteracy rate in Kurdistan Region has dropped to 16% from previous 37% nine year ago and the Ministry of Education is planning to bring the figure down to 10% by the end of 2015.safin dzaee

The ministry of education has been implementing a through plan to reduce illiteracy in the Kurdish Region through opening quick learning schools and evening schools that allow adults to go to school for education.

Illiteracy rate in 2000 and 2001 was as high as 37% but now this rate is only 16%, Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Minister of Education Safin Dizayee told AKnews Tuesday.

The opening of more schools and especially the increasing number of quick learning schools and centers for illiterate adults has been very effective, Faisal Hasan, an assistant to the Director General of Erbil Education Department says.

He says fighting illiteracy has been a top priority for the ministry of education in the recent years.

"In any area or neighborhood, if the majority of the people agree on having an education center they can raise a request to us and we will be happy to help them and provide them with teachers" Hasan said.

Currently, there are 88 quick learning schools in the three provinces of Kurdistan Region which educate some 15,585 learners.
The quick learning centers are for the people who have dropped out of school and their age won't allow them to go back to their grades.

Reported by Ahmed Ghafur
Ry/AKnews

Tuesday, December 28th 2010 3:01 PM

Jordanian PM to arrive in in Baghdad to boost ties, increase oil imports

Baghdad, Dec. 30 (AKnews) - Jordan's Prime Minister Samir Rifai is expected to arrive in Baghdad Monday as part of an official visit to boost relations and increase oil imports from Iraq, according to a source at Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's Office.jordan prime minister, Samir Rifai

Rifai is the second high-level Arab leader after Egypt's Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Gheit, who earlier opened his country's consulate in Erbil city, to visit Baghdad after the formation of the new government.

Jordan is seeking to increase imports of 240 thousand barrels of crude oil from Iraq per month at 10,000 bpd which represents only 10% of the daily needs of Jordan.

"Rifai and Maliki will discuss ways to strengthen diplomatic cooperation between the two countries and raise the Iraqi oil exports to Jordan," the source who declined to be named because he was not authorized to speak to the media told AKnews.

Jordan and Iraq signed an agreement in 2006 under which Iraq exports oil to Jordan for two years. The agreement was extended in August 2008 to another three years with an increased discount of US$22 granted to Jordan from US$18 according to the previous agreement.

More over, expanding the role of Jordanian investment companies in the Iraqi reconstruction projects will be part of the discussions.

Mr Maliki visited Jordan on Oct. 17 heading a delegation from his political bloc in a tour to a number of countries in the region, including Iran, Egypt and Turkey where he discussed the government formation crisis.

Reported by Saman Dzayi
Sa/Ry/AKnews

Kurds insist on holding National Security Ministry

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Erbil, Dec. 29 (AKenws) - Iraqi political parties have agreed to share the three security-related ministries, a Kurdish MP says, and one of which will be given to a Kurd.
Mohsen Saadun
Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's government, approved by Parliament on Dec. 21, is formed of 42 ministries nine of which still unassigned due to political competitions including the ministries of the interior, defense and national security.

The political blocs have agreed that the candidates to the security ministries have to be "neutral" and "qualified"

Mohsen Sadoun of the Kurdish Blocs Coalition (KBC) says he is sure that the ministry of the National Security will be held by a Kurd.

"According to the political agreements between the Iraqi political actors, the ministry of the interior will go to the National Coalition (NC led by Maliki), the defense for the al-Iraqiya, and the Kurds are demanding the national security ministry" said Sadoun.

"being the third largest bloc in the Iraqi parliament, a security portfolios has to be given to the Kurds in the power sharing deals between the al-Iraqiya and NC" he said, "We want the ministry of the national security" he said.

Another Kurdish MP Najmaddin Karim says political agreement is required for any ministerial post. And "Kurds, like Shia and Sunni Arabs have to have their share in the security ministries"

"I am sure that the political actors will reach agreement to give the Kurds one of the three ministries"

Kurds have seven ministries in the new government most notably the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade Ministry, in addition to the presidency, first deputy Prime Minster and second deputy parliament speaker.

reported by Hevidar Ahmed
Ry/AKnews

Wednesday, December 29th 2010 10:21 AM