ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Kurdish leaders welcomed the Muslim Eid al-Fitr holiday with calls for forgiveness and unity at a time when political parties are divided over issues of governance, finances, and security. In the Kurdistan Region and Sunni areas of Iraq, Friday is the first day of Eid al-Fitr, coinciding with the sighting of the crescent moon. For Shiites, the first day of the holiday is Saturday. The holiday ends Ramadan, the month of daytime fasting and prayer. Saying he hopes Muslims in Kurdistan, Iraq, and around the world have a holiday filled with kindness and joy, Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani also had a message for the politicians. “On the political level, the parties in the Kurdistan Region and Iraq should make this occasion a new beginning of unity and solidarity, working together and resolving problems and conflicts collectively. Let us all work together to ensure a better future for our people and our country,” he said. The two ruling parties of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), are at odds over upcoming elections, transparency around revenues, and security issues. The KRG and Iraqi federal government are under pressure to negotiate a resumption of Kurdistan Region oil exports that were halted last month. “I hope this holiday will bring happiness, prosperity, peace and unity among all communities of the Kurdish people,” KRG Prime Minister Masrour Barzani said in an Eid message. Deputy Prime Minister Qubad Talabani said the holiday is a “golden opportunity to strengthen the spirit of forgiveness, freedom, express joy and happiness and at the same time strengthening the foundations of coexistence." Parliament Speaker Rewaz Fayaq called on Kurdistan’s political parties to “overcome the exhausting political conflict in the spirit of patriotism.” Eid al-Fitr is a public holiday in the Kurdistan Region through April 24. The Kurdistan Region’s Ministry of electricity will boost electricity on the national grid, providing more than 20 hours daily during the holidays.
