Savage attacks by the clerical regime of Iran on the border regions in Iraqi Kurdistan and the shelling of the cities and villages in this area has opened yet another dark page in the book of crimes by the mullahs regime against the people of Iraq and especially against Iraqi Kurds.
There are reports that shelling of Iraq’s northern Kurdish regions by the clerical regime has resulted in dozens of people getting killed or injured and hundreds more were forced to leave their homes.
Iraqi parliamentarian Saad Barzanji, speaking on behalf of the Kurdish coalition, stated last week: “It is some time that the villages of Iraqi Kurdistan are suffering from savage shelling of the Iranian regime which is repeated daily. This shelling has caused damages and left thousands of families homeless. In these areas people are left homeless and terrified in the freezing cold weather. These attacks have expanded to the middle and southern regions of Kurdistan and according to the VOA television, on Friday of September 7th, the IRGC shelled portions of the Khaneqin region in Iraq for 2 hours. By shelling the Iraqi Kurdish border regions, the clerical regime has caused destruction of the villages and property of the people living in these areas and left them homeless.
On September 1st, Ossman Haji Mahmoud, Kurdistan’s Minister of Interior told the Kurdish parliament that the shelling by the Iranian regime has resulted in the migration of 450 families from 20 villages. He added that a number of these people suffered injuries in addition to damages to their properties. The governor of Erbil who had gone to Kurdish regions to investigate the matter was himself witness to the shelling of mullah’s regime mercenaries in these regions. The Kurdish TV reported: “Concurrent to the visit of a Kurdish delegation of Kurdish regions that had been shelled, Iranian regime’s artillery shelled those regions for one hour. This shelling left no ambiguity as to the aims and conduct of the Iranian regime against the people of this region. Nozad Hadi, governor of Erbil, emphasized that there is no rationale or pretext for the shelling and creation of this situation cannot in any way be supported. People are suffering and terrified but the shelling is continuing.”
The dimension of the inhumane crimes of the clerical regime in these barbarous attacks cannot be covered in this short essay; however, these reports present a picture – although incomplete – of the savagery of the mullahs and their criminal revolutionary guards. Politically these attacks have faced severe condemnations both in the Iraqi Kurdistan and also the whole of Iraq. Local and national officials have issued statements condemning and protesting these crimes. These condemnations denounce the transgression against Iraq’s sovereignty and its self-determination but at the same time they disclose the ominous intents of the mullahs in their terrorist meddling in Iraq and dictating their policies to the depressed and deprived people of Iraq.
Regarding these attacks the governor of Erbil states: “The shelling of the border regions in Kurdistan is not only flagrant violation of international covenant and treaties but a violation of Iraq’s independence and sovereignty. It targets the villagers, immigrants and the deprived and oppressed people.” (Kurdish TV, September 2, 2007) Massoud Barezani, leader of Iraqi Kurdistan, in his statements that condemned the mullahs’ attacks said: “No matter how much these attacks increase, we shall not bend to the political ploy of the Iranian regime.”
These proclamations by Mr. Barezani clearly show that the aim of the clerical regime in these shellings is to span out fear as a way to dictate its policies in Iraq; however, these meddling have been met head on by Kurdish leaders and Iraqi parliamentarians.