What are the implications of closing offices close to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party?
Asayish media director in Sulaymaniyah, Salam Abdul Khaleq, confirmed to Al-Hurra website that the closure of these organizations and centers was based on the judicial order issued by Baghdad months ago, and does not require a new judicial order.
He added that the matter includes other centers, organizations and offices of the aforementioned party in Sulaymaniyah and the Kurdistan Region in general, and these parties were informed of the decision to close a few days ago and terminate their work licenses in Sulaymaniyah.
In July last year, the Iraqi government decided to classify the opposition Turkish Kurdistan Workers’ Party as a banned organization and sent a letter to state institutions and ministries to deal with the aforementioned party according to this perspective.
Last August, the Iraqi Elections Judicial Authority decided to dissolve three parties in Sinjar district, namely the “Yazidi Freedom and Democracy Party,” the “Democratic Struggle Front,” and the “Kurdistan Community Freedom Party,” on the grounds of their association with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, and ordered the closure of their headquarters.
Turkish excuse
The leader of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, Ghiyath Surji, denied any connection between his party and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party. He said in an interview with the “Al-Hurra” website that these accusations are “false and a pretext taken by Turkey with the aim of interfering in the internal affairs” of Sulaymaniyah Governorate.
He added that the goal is “to subject the National Union to its (Ankara’s) agendas,” and that stopping Turkish Airlines flights to Sulaymaniyah Airport for more than a year and a half is “evidence of the intentions of the Turkish side.”
He added that the decision to close the centers and offices was issued by Baghdad and the regional government directed those concerned in Sulaymaniyah to implement it, and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan had no connection to the decision to close the offices.
Sorgi believes that the closed centers and offices are not necessarily linked to the PKK. They may be close ideologically, but they are not part of this party. He wondered, “Is every leftist a communist and is every Islamist an ISIS?”
The leader of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan Party, Ghiyath Surji, confirmed that other authorized offices and organizations were closed months ago in Erbil Governorate due to their association with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, and no such pressure occurred against it.
The Kurdistan Workers’ Party, which opposes Turkey, uses the rugged mountainous areas within the Kurdistan region, especially the Qandil, Kara, and Assos mountain ranges, and the Sinjar and Makhmur regions, as a base for its military operations. The party’s members are spread along the Iraqi-Turkish-Iranian border triangle, all the way to the Iraqi-Syrian border, in addition to establishing dozens of headquarters and centers affiliated with the party within the cities. Kurdistan Region.
In August 2024, Iraq and Turkey signed a memorandum of understanding for military and security cooperation and combating terrorism between the two countries, which included the exchange of experiences, training and consultation, and intelligence and security coordination to confront the threats of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party.
Political observer Saman Shali said in an interview with Al-Hurra website that the region is going through many changes that require Kurdish parties to adapt politically to the changes and not stand against the trend.
He believes that the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, which “exaggerated its openness” with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, “should limit the role of this party in Sulaymaniyah Governorate to build a new phase of peace in the region and Iraq,” and that closing these offices “comes in this direction and responds to the requirements of the next phase.”
Shali believes that the closure of offices and organizations close to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party came as a result of regional pressures on which the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, which has influence in Sulaymaniyah Governorate, is being exposed and is not related to the location of these offices’ work permits, as they have been operating in the governorate for years.
Since the summer of 2024, Turkey has been launching extensive military operations to pursue PKK fighters in Dohuk Governorate and the districts of Zakho, Badnan, Amadiyah, Batifa, Dirluk, Kani Masi, Jabal Matin, and Jabal Gara.
Türkiye penetrated dozens of kilometers deep into Iraqi territory, coinciding with air and artillery bombardment of PKK positions in Qandil, Hakurk, and Gara.
Professor of political science at Al-Mustansiriya University, Issam Al-Fili, told Al-Hurra website that members of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party are spread in most areas of the Kurdistan region, and that closing offices, centers and organizations linked to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party in Sulaymaniyah “will not have an impact on the political and organizational work” of this party.
He said that this party has a great ability to be present in civil society organizations and is working in more than one direction, but the decision to close these offices sends a message that the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan “is going towards creating a change in its policy to ease the pressures imposed on it,” especially on the issue of stopping Turkish Airlines flights. To Sulaymaniyah Airport.
It is also “an attempt to rapprochement with the Kurdistan Democratic Party, which has many intersections with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, and also to convey a message to the international community that it respects international resolutions.”
Al-Fili believes that the Kurdistan Workers’ Party possesses a strength that is “equal to the strength of the two ruling parties” in the Kurdistan region, the Patriotic Union and the Kurdistan Democratic Party.
He said that the union “exploited its relationship with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party as a pressure card against the Kurdistan Democratic Party in light of the traditional hostility between the two parties.”
Al-Fili explained that Sulaymaniyah Governorate “was greatly damaged by the Patriotic Union’s relationship with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party as a result of the reluctance of Turkish companies to invest in Sulaymaniyah.”
A political decision with a legal cover
The closure of offices and media centers angered civil society organizations in Sulaymaniyah. Rahman Gharib, coordinator of the Matrouh Center for Defending Journalists’ Rights, said in an interview with Al-Hurra website that the decision “violates the civil society organizations law and the freedom of the press law in the region.”
He added that the decision “has a political nature, but with a legal cover,” and that it came as a result of “external pressure” on the Iraqi government and the Kurdistan Regional Government.
He stressed that the decision “is a product of the security agreement between Baghdad and Ankara.” Gharib pointed out that classifying these offices as close to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party “does not justify their closure.”
