“I am hailing all the victorious. The brave forces such as the army, police, security forces, Hashd al-Shaabi, counter-terrorism forces, air force and pilots, and all the divisions of the armed forces who supported us, including engineer and medical teams and our supporters from the tribal forces and people in the liberated areas, those who supported their army,” Abadi stated.
His omission of the Peshmerga drew quick condemnation from Kurdistan.
“Unfortunately, Mr. Abadi, once again failed to act as the prime minister and sidelined the role of the brave of Peshmerga while the whole world witnessed that the Peshmerga, before all the armed forces of Iraq whom were named by Abadi, managed to defeat the myth of ISIS,” the Peshmerga Ministry stated, adding that ISIS would have wreaked much more havoc on the country had the Peshmerga not halted the group’s march across the country.
Accusing Abadi of holding a grudge against the Kurdish forces, the ministry asked what the prime minister had to say to the families of the Peshmerga who made sacrifices in the fight to defeat ISIS.
“How does he expect them and the nation of Kurdistan to have the sense of belonging to Iraq when they see this is how the prime minister acts,” the ministry asked.
Saying the Peshmerga does not want any thank you from Abadi, the ministry added “Unfortunately, instead of laying the groundwork for dialogue, Mr. Prime Minister acts otherwise.”
The Gorran bloc in the Iraqi parliament also criticized Abadi, according to the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), which welcomed the stance and said “unity among us is the only safeguard to our goals.”
Abadi’s political rival, Nouri al-Maliki, however, named the Peshmerga in a tweet congratulating the Shiite militias and federal forces on the victory.
More than 1,846 Peshmerga gave their lives in the ISIS fight and another 10,000 were wounded. Iraqi forces have not released their casualty figures.
When the Iraqi and Peshmerga forces agreed to fight a common enemy side-by-side in the Mosul offensive, leaders from both Erbil and Baghdad hailed the unprecedented cooperation.
This is the first time the Peshmerga and Iraqi forces have shed blood together, Barzani said on the first day of the Mosul operation last year. “We hope it’s a good start to create a bright future for both sides.”
Two weeks later, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi echoed Barzani’s words. “For the first time in Iraqi history the Iraqi federal forces with Peshmerga are fighting shoulder-to-shoulder,” he said. “This is the new Iraq.”
That unity was short-lived. Kurdistan held a referendum on independence in September and Baghdad responded with force. Iraqi forces and Hashd al-Shaabi seized control of the disputed areas.
This week, Abadi equated retaking the disputed areas with the defeat of ISIS – a stand slammed by both the Peshmerga and the Kurdistan Region parliament.
Abadi reserved some of his highest praise on Saturday for the Shiite forces and Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani.
Sistani issued a fatwa in mid-2014 urging Iraq’s Shiites to take up arms against ISIS. His call for jihad led to the creation of the Hashd al-Shaabi, an umbrella of more than 60 armed militias. The controversial force has since come formally under Iraqi government control, but has been accused of violations against Sunnis and Kurds. Many of the influential militias are backed by Iran.
“History records the clear stance of Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani and his historical fatwa for jihad to defend the land and its sacredness, a fatwa which was welcomed by the elderly and youth for the biggest volunteer campaign to support our armed forces. After that, the fight against terror was turned into an unprecedented united national war,” Abadi said.
Though Iraq is divided with its forces having faced off with the Peshmerga just weeks earlier, Abadi remained triumphant.
“The fears as Iraq was on the verge of partition ended with the joy of success and the protection of the unity of Iraq. The integrity of Iraq and its nation are the biggest achievements for us. Thanks be to God, our nation came out of all this in a united way,” he said.
He declared Sunday, December 10 a national holiday. The Kurdistan Region, however, will not be celebrating.
- Announcement -
— KRG (@Kurdistan) December 9, 2017
Sunday, December 10th, 2017 is not a holiday in the Kurdistan Region.
