Iraqi Kurdish Parliament to Hear Barzani's Statement, Discuss Region's Presidency

TEHRAN (defapress) – Iraqi Kurdistan Region's parliament will meet on Sunday to hear a statement from the outgoing President of the semi-autonomous region Masoud Barzani and discuss the Region’s presidency law.

News ID: 66735

Date: 29 October 2017 - 11:32

The Iraqi Kurdistan Region’s parliament session for discussing the issue has already been postponed twice.

The parliament's deputy speaker, Jaafar Imniki, told the Kurdistan Democratic Party-affiliated Rudaw News Agency that Barzani sent a letter to the parliament on Saturday and the letter will be read out during the meeting on Sunday.

The letter will address Barzani's refusal to seek an extension or amendment to his term, according to his senior assistant Hemin Hawrami.

Barzani's term was last extended in August 2015 until such time as elections are held. Barzani called for presidential and parliamentary elections to be held on November 1, a date that was subsequently postponed by parliament. While parliament extended its own term along with the vote postponement, Hawrami said the president is not seeking anything similar.

Meantime Reuters reported citing a government official that the letter also outlines a plan to divide up his powers.

A member of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), Dler Mawati, confirmed that a "special meeting" of the parliament will be held on Sunday, but declined to reveal the agenda. A "national question will be discussed,” he said.

The issue up for discussion has been agreed on by his PUK, the Kurdistan Democratic Party and the Kurdistan Islamic Union (KIU), Mawati added.