ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — The trial of five Duhok detainees was adjourned in an Erbil court on Tuesday after hearing statements from the accused and witnesses, according to parliament members who attended the trial and said there was no proof of the alleged crime.
Amer Khalid Agid, Frsat Ahmad, Jamal Khalil, Suleiman Kamal, and Suleiman Mousa, all from Duhok, were among tens of people arrested during anti-government protests last year.
The accusations against them are “forming a group by the name of Harakat al-Mustaqbal (Future Movement), along with plotting chaos,” Karwan Gaznay, an MP from the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), said, speaking to media outside the courthouse after the hearing adjourned.
The five accused denied the charges. “They themselves said this is the first time they heard of this group,” said Gaznay.
Their lawyer last week said the men are accused of trying to undermine the stability of the Kurdistan Region by establishing a political party with Iraqi President Barham Salih and forming a group to support current Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi.
“What we saw today, we can confirm that none of the accusations have been proven. They denied all the accusations against them, and the witnesses can be used as defense, as they also denied those accusations,” Gaznay said. “Even the representative of the security council said in his testimony to the court that when they were arrested, no weapons were seized with them, only phones and personal belongings.”
Gorran MP Ali Hama Saleh also attended the trial and said the detainees are accused of “preparing” to carry out the alleged acts.
Noting that no weapons were found on the group, he asked, “If there is an armed group that wants to carry out a coup, or terrorism, or murder, is it possible for them to not have an AK-47 on them?”
“Five people have testified, and they all proved their innocence. There is no proof, not even a small text that says these men were trying to kill for example the governor or any official,” he added.
There are multiple cases ongoing on similar charges in connection with the Duhok protests last year. On Monday, Masoud Ali Haji, Sherwan Taha Amin, Karger Abbas Ali and Bandawar Ayub appeared in court.
In February, five journalists and activists – Sherwan Sherwani, Shvan Saeed, Ayaz Karam, Hariwan Issa, and Guhdar Zebari – who were also arrested in Duhok last year, were found guilty of “endangering the national security of the Kurdistan Region.” They were sentenced to six years in jail, prompting outcry from media watchdogs and human rights groups, as well as diplomatic representatives in the Kurdistan Region.
Erbil’s appellate court upheld the original ruling last month, after several appeals. Several foreign missions have criticized the court ruling.
